A Black and White Film: A Titans Documentary
by Okurah
Summary: Dahlia Black (OC), also known as Doll, a new girl with a passion for football and photography moves into the Titans life from sunny California. She's a blend of girly and sporty, and is lucky to join the Titans as they dance their way into history. They don't realize it yet, but this fight that they're fighting means more to her than they know it. [Pairing TBA]
1. Chapter One

Hello! I've always loved this movie and have watched it WAY too many times to be healthy.

Anyways I decided to try to write a fan fiction for it! Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own none of the original character, that all belongs to Disney!

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Chapter One: New Place, New Home, New Neighbors

Driving down the road on it's way to Virginia, a sleek and shiny black Chevelle could be seen speeding on by. In that said car was a father and his only daughter who was busy holding up one of her newest babies, a Canon AV-I, shooting pictures of the amazing view from her opened window. It was a special gift for her from her father considering it was the only of it's type out at that time. Photography was her passion, and she was dang good at it too.

"Daddy, you still haven't told me how you managed to snag one of these puppies before they were even released!" The young girl asks as she lowers her camera gently down on her lap to glance over at her father. Said man was quite good looking for his age, he seemed to hold a greaser look from back in the 50s. His black hair seemed to be slicked up and back in a stylish male pompadour look, his bright green eyes still held a childish and slightly mischievous glint to them, and his clothing consisted of a white t-shirt and dark jeans.

"Now you know I can't go revealing all my secrets, doll." He answers calling his daughter by her nickname with a slight Brooklyn drawl to his voice, much like his daughters. She smiles at him before shaking her head and laughing lightly at him.

"Did you do a trade for little ol' me? Come on Pops I ain't clueless!" She teases playfully while pulling one of her strands of similar black hair behind her ear. Much like her father, Doll (or Dahlia) was quite the looker. She had full black hair that waved beautifully down to her mid-back, which was currently held back by a knotted piece of cloth that resembled a headband. She had kind hazel eyes upon her heart shaped face, and lovely lips that seemed to be in a constant pout. She was dressed nicely in a fitted white top and flowy dark blue high waisted skirt that went down to just below her knees. She had wanted to dress more appropriately so she could perhaps blend in a little more. Something told her shorts and a tank top were more for the beaches of her previous home rather than where they were heading.

"If you already know then why do you ask? Of course I did a trade! I always get the best for my baby girl." He barks out while reaching over to try and mess her hair up causing her to react and begin to slap his hands away.

"Pops? Is it nice in Virginia?" Dahlia asks once things settled down between the two. They had lived in California for most of her life and she had to admit, she really liked it there. She wasn't too against moving to Virginia, but she had heard that people there weren't exactly the nicest ones you could meet.

"Of course it's nice." Her father seems to answer hesitantly. Receiving a certain look from his daughter he lets out a resigned sigh and seemed to grip the steering wheel a little tighter, "I'm not going to lie darling… Things are different here. They aren't as open minded as us folks back in California."

"What do you mean?" Dahlia asks glancing up from her previous task of fidgeting with one of the dials on her new toy.

"The black community here in Virginia aren't as accepted as they are back home, hon." He warns her cautiously. She seemed to furrow her darkly colored brows at the thought as she glances down to her own lightly colored skin. She really didn't like where this was going.

"So… They're racist." She stated bluntly. Her father let out a dark chuckle while mumbling something like, 'some of the worst I've ever seen' under his breath.

"Don't worry honey. They're integrating the school this year, which I thought was the perfect opportunity for you." He announces with a smile causing his daughter to look at him questionably.

"I heard they're making a football team." He hints glancing down at the camera in her lap. She smiles slowly catching her father's point, "I think they might need a little help with integrating, don't you?" He asks which causes his daughter to laugh and agree with him a full 100%. Football just happened to be another of her passions. Her two older brothers, who were now away at college, both played football in highschool and she just happened to be their own personal paparazzi.

Once the two arrived at their new house, Dahlia took the time to look around at the place she would now call home. All the houses looked similar to her and she slightly wondered how on Earth she would be able to tell which one was her own as she walked home from school everyday.

"Hey!" She heard someone call out. She raised an eyebrow and seemed to locate the voice coming from across the street. She glanced over and saw a young man waving at her slightly, which she answered with a smile and wave of her own. Seeing her response he seemed to glance both ways before jogging across the street over to her. As he grew closer Dahlia could see that the boy was quite tall and attractive in a sort of boy next door type of way.

"Hi! You must be the new neighbor." He exclaims once in front of her smiling, "The name's Gerry Bertier." He announces holding out a hand to her. She glances at it for a moment before grabbing it with her own.

"Nice to meet ya'. I'm Dahlia Black, but most just call me Doll or Black." She responds shaking his hand. Gerry seemed to raise an eyebrow at her as they released the hold on their handshake.

"That's quite an interesting accent you got there. Where'd you come from?" He asks her while seemingly staring at her face hard in an attempt to figure it out.

"I'm from California." She states while smiling wider at Gerry's surprised expression, "I know the accent doesn't match, I get it from my father who grew up in New York."

"No offense, but you don't quite fit the description of a California girl." He chuckles after saying. Dahlia seemed to laugh and wave it off as well.

"Don't worry I get that a lot! I ain't exactly the blonde, barbie type am I?" She states while holding up a strand of pitch black hair. Gerry nods in agreement as the two laugh a little more in a comfortable manner.

"Would you happen to be going to T.C. Williams?" She asks as she calms down a bit. Gerry seems to grow troubled, before nodding slowly.

"Yeah, it was previously Hammond High... You going there as well I presume?" He asks while rubbing at the back of his head. Dahlia smiles and nods enthusiastically.

"Great! I'll at least know someone there!" She seems to cheer happily causing Gerry to smile at the seemingly giddy girl, "You won't leave me out there on my own to die, right?" She asks him quickly pointing an accusatory finger his way with an eyebrow raised in question.

"Now what kind of gentleman would I be if I did that?" He answers innocently while raising both his hands up slightly at the accusation. A wide smile slowly made it's way back on to Dahlia's face showing off a dimple on her left cheek.

"I think we'll get along quite nicely Mr. Bertier." She claims while nodding in approval at his answer causing him to once again chuckle at the strange but amusing girl. He had to admit Dahlia was quite attractive, but his heart was set on his girlfriend Emma. However, he agreed with her and knew that they would most likely get along well.

"Now, would you be a doll and help me carry some of my things in?" She asks snapping Gerry out of his slight reverie.

"Me? Be a doll? Isn't that your name?" He jokes before freezing as he catches a glance of the vehicle in front of him.

"Is that a your car?" He asks walking up slowly to the shiny black beauty. Dahlia glanced up from under the hood of the back trunk and giggled at Gerry's wide eyes and slacked jaw.

"Yessir, ain't she a beauty?" Dahlia's father asks as he exits the house. Gerry seemed to quickly sober up and introduce himself to the well put together man in front of him.

"Well, Gerry was it? You like cars, son?" The older man asks causing the teen, who noticed the similarity between Dahlia and her father, to nod vigorously.

"Yessir Mr. Black! We've got a nice new red Camaro sitting in our own garage!" Gerry bragged slightly causing Dahlia to roll her eyes and mumble something about, 'men' under her breath.

"Well then! By all means you're welcomed here anytime. And you can call me Danny." Her father states as he grabs a box and took it in the house. Dahlia turned to Gerry and shoved him lightly.

"Guess you're basically an honorary member of the Black family household." She states as they both laugh at her father's antics.

"He's a bit of a grease monkey." She states lifting a box up and out of the car, "He restores, builds, and fixes all sorts of vehicles. However, he does have a habit of collecting vintage beauties." She continues catching Gerry's attention, "Who knows, if he likes you well enough he could trade and get you a car of your own." She continues catching him by surprise.

"Let me help you with that!" He's quick to exclaim while grabbing the box from Dahlia earning him another grateful smile.

Once they were all done moving in Dahlia and her father thanked Gerry for his help, which he waved off. He offered to have dinner over his house some time and then bid them a farewell and 'see you later' to Dahlia.

"Well he seemed nice." Her father states receiving a laugh as an answer.

"Yeah… For now." She replies before bidding her father a goodnight.

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Hope you guys liked it! Feel free to favorite and/or review!

I have the next chapter waiting to post if you all like it enough.

Also… Who would you like to see Dahlia paired with at the end?


	2. Chapter Two

I see that there are some people reading this fic! So, I'll go on and post another chapter!

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own none of Remember The Titans!

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Chapter Two: Coach Boone and Coach Yoast

The next couple of days passed by quickly for Dahlia as she began to sort her many different camera's within her room. She wanted to speak with the football coach of the T.C. William Titans to perhaps get a place amongst the team as photographer/documentor. She knew she was well qualified, but she needed to remember that she was a girl, and they weren't exactly given a place amongst the team unless they were cheering for them on the sidelines.

Dahlia had also figured out that Gerry was also a part of this football team, or that's what she thought at least. It turns out that the integrating of the schools also caused for Gerrys original coach to be replaced by some, _"black animal"_ as Gerry so nicely put it. This received him a harsh glare from Dahlia, and a violent end to their conversation as she quickly excused herself and left.

Another thing Dahlia learned after a little snooping around is that there was a football meeting at the gym today. This was a perfect chance to speak to the new coach! She just needed to sneak inside and catch him afterwards to perhaps persuade him to let her join. Her father had told her that it would all work out because of that "natural Black charm" of hers. Which she really in complete honesty did not understand.

Dahlia was now inside the gym staying hidden behind the bleachers. She could see that there were a few people already there, but they didn't seem to notice her at all. She frowned as she noted that all of them were of one race, and that there was no mixing yet.

"We gon' play some ball y'all! Black inside! Black inside! Black inside!" She could hear one of them who sported a baby face yell merrily as he high fived some of the others around him. Dahlia peered through the steps and chuckled quietly to herself as he continued with, "Uh, uh, uh, uh, uh!"

"Hey yo, Petey!" A larger male shouts catching the attention of the excited boy. Dahlia smiled as she learnt one of their names. She was aware that if she were to get this job, she'd need to know their names and most likely their positions. She knew Gerry had been a linebacker in his previous year, but she didn't think she'd have to remember that since she didn't seem him here at this mandatory meeting.

"How many yards you think you gon' get this season, bruh?" The large dark skinned male asked causing Petey to smile.

"You know I ain't one to brag, Big Blue." He responds causing Dahlia to once again take note of another name to remember. Big Blue, she had to admit that was a pretty sick name.

"But I figure uh, at least uh… a thousand." Petey finishes causing all the other guys to laugh and joke at his expense, which Petey defends himself with half-hearted statements, "But I ain't one to brag."

"Hey, didn't I tell you how them white boys weren't gon' play for no brotha?" A tall and sharp looking guy states next catching the attention of all the others.

"Well who needs 'em baby! From now on the Titans is gon' be powered by soul power, bruh." Big Blue booms loudly as he begins to sing. Dahlia smiles and begins to nod her head to his deep voice, but jumps when a sudden loud whistle pierces the air. She could have sworn she hadn't heard anyone come in!

As she tried to calm her heart beat she could see two adult males, who were also of dark colored skin walk in. Dahlia rubbed her brow as she tried to determine which one of these she would have to talk to to get the position she wanted. She watched as one of them stalked on over to Petey who had his hand raised and a big ol' smile on his face.

"Put your hand down!" He said sharply after staring at Petey for a bit. Petey seemed to stop smiling for a second and lowered his hand. Dahlia felt a slight sense of pity for the boy she thought was probably a bit younger than her.

"You smiling." The guy once again stated causing Petey to answer hesitantly with a, "Yes."

"Yessir!" The man corrected causing Petey to repeat the statement.

"Why are you smiling!" He demanded

"Cause I love football? Footballs fun?" Petey answered slowly. Dahlia seemed to hide her face in her hands as she felt embarrassed for the poor boy.

"Fun sir! It's fun? You sure?" He continued to shout.

"I think so." Petey answered now with wide eyes.

"Now you thinkin. First you smile then you think? You think football is still fun?" He boomed.

"Uh… Yes!" Petey answers smiling once again.

"Sir." The man corrects causing Petey to frown. Dahlia peaked through her fingers still dying for the poor guy being interrogated in front of all his friends.

"Yes… No.. S-Sir. Uhh… Well, it was fun." Petey seems to stumble over words under the man's harsh stare. Dahlia couldn't see the man's face, but judging by his voice he was a man of action.

"Not anymore though is it? Is it!?" He demands causing Petey to stutter out a bunch of nos. "No, It's not fun anymore. Not even a little is it?"

"Uhhhh… No." Petey stutters.

"Make up your mind!" The man once again shouts. "Go ahead make up your mind now that you're thinking."

"No, sir."

"Absolutely not?"

"Zero fun, sir." Petey finally states with a strained smile on his face. Dahlia couldn't help but chuckle to herself quietly at Petey's face as the man finally glances away.

"Alright, listen up I'm Coach Boone! I'm going to tell you all how much, _fun_." He announces halting to glance at Petey before continuing, "You gon' have this season." Dahlia could feel herself visibly deflate at the knowledge of this man being the coach. She would definitely have a bit of a time convincing this 'down to business' man to let her on this team. She however did know that this Coach Boone, was good at showing his authority.

"We leave for camp! Gettysburg College. August 15th. 7:29 am." He listed off causing Dahlia to take mental note of everything stated. "If you report at 7:30, you will not be playing football this season you will be watching." Dahlia was impressed by this man. He began to list off the attire they were to wear and demanded they look professional and even took the time to insult the way they were dressed now. Dahlia self consciously glanced down at herself to see that she was wearing a nice dark blue polka dotted sailor type dress. She would judge that this would suffice as formal. She began to fiddle with her camera hanging around her neck as she continued to grow more nervous.

"This is no democracy. This is a dictatorship. I am the law. If you survive camp you will be on the team. _If_ you survive" Hearing this Dahlia seemed to raise her eyebrows in surprise. This man was so serious.

"Check 'em in, Coach." He finished causing the other man to step up.

"Check 'em in! I'm Coach Hines your offensive line coach. Yell out your name and position starting from the right." He announces causing Petey, who was all the way to the right to grin from ear to ear once again. The girl in hiding smiled to herself knowing she'd have to remember everything being said once again.

"Petey Jones. Running back. THE Running Back, ya'll." He joked once again causing all the other males in the gym to laugh and clown him. Coach Hines seemed to chuckle good heartedly before jotting down the information. Dahlia even chuckled a bit glad that the jokesters spirit was still intact.

"Jerry Harris. Quarterback." A new voice pipes up catching Dahlia's attention. This male seemed very well put together. He had a "good boy" look about him and seemed very kind by the smile on his face. To her surprise everyone around him began to suddenly shout out "Rev!" and "Hallelujah!" Coach Hines seemed to wonder the same thing as he asked about it.

"Its just a nickname." He waves off causing Dahlia to smile. So it seems he was a good boy after all, she could appreciate that. Suddenly running could be heard and she saw quite a large white male make his way in the crowd. It became dreadfully silent as the newcomer tried to catch his breath. Dahlia was shocked, but quickly grew excited as things were beginning to mix. It was only one, but it was a start.

"And, who in the name of heaven might you be?" Coach Hines asks pointing his pen in his direction.

"Uhm, Louie Lastik. Offensive Lineman. Naval family just moved in from Bayonne. Someone said football, so I come running. What's going on everybody?" Dahlia smiled widely at the teddy bear like giant, but frowned by the awkward silence that followed suit… It seemed that the whites here weren't the only ones that were slightly racist. It seems the blacks weren't too fond of the opposite color either. She couldn't blame them really, she just felt bad for the kind giant.

Doors being shoved open could be heard echoing through the gym catching everyone's attention. Dahlia seemed to grow slightly angry when she saw a bunch of other guys, who were all notably white, come barging in. It was rude. She wasn't the type to stand for rude behavior, her scowl seemed to grow deeper as she spotted Gerry's face amongst the crowd of intruders. They were lead by two other adult males, and by the look on Coach Boone's face… Things weren't too peachy at the moment.

"You have just disrupted my first team meeting in an unacceptable fashion!" Coach Boone said a bit peeved. Dahlia snuck out after them in attempts to catch him alone afterwards. "This is my team now either you're with that or not."

"I'm here ain't I?" The man known as Coach Yoast, as Dahlia found out, said with a little bit of attitude, "Lets talk football."

"Lets talk football." Coach Boone agreed.

"I run the defense-"

"As a part of my team's strategy. Now I have never seen an assistant coaches name in a newspaper for losing a game." Boone warns cutting him off.

"I want a job for Coach Tyrell. Now he's been with me for ten years and I won't leave him out in the cold. You don't get me without him." Yoast explains. Dahlia could respect that, she just hoped that these coaches would play fair with each other much like she hoped the actual players would do as well. Coach Boone on the other hand seemed to take in a calming breath before answering.

"You're over cooking my grits Coach." The two seemed to stare each other down for a moment making the quiet girl grow nervous, "Alright, I will allow Coach Tyrell to coach the Special Team, but I will have my eye on him." Coach Boone warns him, "And you." They seemed to come to an agreement and shook hands briefly. Dahlia took in a deep breath before stepping out and walking over to the two official coaches of T.C. Williams Titans.

"Excuse me? Coach Boone and Coach Yoast?" She announces just loud enough to catch the two Coaches' attention.

"Excuse me? Were you spying on us?" Coach Boone seemed to question with a hard look on his face, seemingly not appreciating the intrusion. Coach Yoast on the other hand seemed to be surprised to see the girl.

"I apologize for the intrusion of privacy, but I was just trying to find the Coach to talk to and so happened to have found you two." She apologizes and gives a soft smile as she gestures to the two of them. She needed to be very careful on how she worded things. She needed to somehow appease to both coaches, without insulting the other.

"Well then, you found him. State your name and business then young lady." Coach Boone states crossing his arms. Coach Yoast on the other hand seemed to just stare at her curiously. She calmed herself and decided to take her daddy's advice and just act natural.

"Great! It's nice to meet you coaches! My name is Dahlia Black." She introduces herself holding out her hand to Coach Boone first. He seems to widen his eyes a fraction before reaching out to grip the young ladies hand in return. She made sure to give him a solid and firm shake before doing the same for Coach Yoast.

"Me and my dad just moved here from California. He runs the new mechanic shop down the road from here." Dahlia says while shoving a finger over her shoulder as an indication of where, "When I heard that this school was just recently integrating, I was downright excited." Dahlia tested to gauge the reaction from both coaches. She needed to know where this Coach Yoast stood, she needed to see if he was racist to know how to handle this.

"Really?" Coach Boone seemed to ask with slight surprise. Yoast seemed to hold the same reaction and a ghost of a smile could be seen on his face. Dahlia smirked to herself deciding that that was a good sign.

"Yessir. Where I come from we judge a man by his character, not by the shallow judgement of his skin. I can't wait to see the transition happen here as well." She announced causing both coaches to nod her way.

"Well now, this is a nice change of scenery here." Coach Boone announces taking the time to smile down at the girl in front of him. He was in fact impressed by the girl who appeared to be polite, well dressed, and confident. He had to admit he was interested in what she had to ask of him. "However, what is it that you wanted to talk about exactly." He states causing the girl to hold up the camera hanging around her neck.

"Coach Boone, Coach Yoast, I wish to be on the team." She states boldly causing Boone to chuckle at the thin girl in front of him. Yoast seemed to smile widely as well.

"You want to play football?" Yoast asks carefully. Dahlia seemed to smile impishly at the question.

"Now don't doubt my ability to play football Coach. I can play." She states causing both men to raise their brows, "That is not why I want to be on the team though. I'm a photographer. I wish to be able to photograph and document the Titans way into history." This seems to catch the interest of both coaches, much to Dahlia's delight.

"You guys are fighting a war here, and it won't be easy. I will document your games, victories, practices, anything you need. I'll make sure to make each and every Titan look their best in every photo and shot." She states lowering her camera once again to lay around her neck, "I just want a place on the team. What you guys are doing will change these boys and town for life, I want to help you all fight this battle." She states proudly smiling up at the two men. It was silent for a moment before Boone seemed to nod and shake his head in disbelief at the little girl.

"Well how can I say no to that?" He states causing Dahlia to grin childishly and shake his hand excitedly.

"Really! Oh thank you! I'm glad to be doing business with someone such as you Coach Boone." She tells him. She glances over to Yoast to see he has a smile on his face as well.

"Don't worry Coach Yoast. I've spoken to Gerry Bertier a couple of times and know you think of your boys as your own. I'll photograph and document their greatest moments and keep track of all their stats. Colleges will be lining up for miles to get a chance to have a Titan play for their team, I promise you that." She explains to the man she had priorly thought as rude. His response was a proud and impressed grin and she shook his hand as well sealing the deal.

"Well now, you really think you're up for all that?" Coach Yoast asks as they released their grips. She smiled and nodded.

"I've been taking pictures and learning football since before I can remember. I've already got some members stats started. I've got Gerry Bertier, Defensive Linebacker. Petey Jones, Running back. Jerry "Rev" Harris, Quarterback. And last but not least Louie Lastik, Offensive Lineman." She lists once again impressing the coaches.

"Were you spying on us in the gym as well?" Coach Boone accuses her once again with a hard stare. She lets out an apologetic look before trying to defend herself.

"Like I said I wanted to speak to you." She responded. Coach Boone and Yoast smiled at the young girl.

"Well, then you've got initiative. I like that. I think we can find a place for you on our team. It would benefit us greatly to have someone to document what we do on the team, wouldn't you agree Coach Yoast?" Boone asks.

"It would indeed do us some good." He agrees thinking of his boys chances at college.

"Great! So when can I start?" She asks jumping up and down slightly.

"Well, we'll be seeing you bright and early on August 15th." Boone announces.

"I'm going to camp?" Dahlia asks in shock.

"You didn't think you could get out of that did you? You need to train as well! You need to be able to run along the sidelines and catch the boys in action don't you?!" He asks catching Dahlia by surprise, "I hope you're in shape Ms. Black, because I'll be expecting you to be out there shooting the boys while they practice."

"Can do!" She agrees happily. Coach Yoast raised an eyebrow at the demands of Coach Boone. Surely he wasn't serious about making this young lady work out with a bunch of big guys.

"I expect you to be there at 7:30 sharp. You will arrive dressed formally to go on the bus. For camp however, please refrain from dressing in things too dainty to run in because I will not let you off lightly. You will show me everything that you catch after every practice, so pack as much as you deem necessary. Can you do that for me?" Coach states in a business like manner. Dahlia salutes him causing him to nod in approval.

"I can do that. It was nice discussing business with you Coach Boone and Coach Yoast. I promise you, you won't be disappointed." She states as turns around and bids them a farewell. Just before she turn the corner however, she turn back around and shouts out cheekily, "Oh! And you mean 7:29, right Coach Boone?" As soon as the words are out of her mouth she disappears around the corner.

"Can you believe the nerve of that girl." Coach Boone seems to chuckle to himself.

"You aren't serious about making her practice with the boys are you?" Coach Yoast asks him. He gets a certain look from Boone as he turns around to head back to the gym. Yoast simply shakes his head at him and wonders back to this Dahlia girl. She knows her football and is willing to get down and dirty. His daughter Sheryl was sure to get along beautifully with her.

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Hope you all enjoyed it!

I've gotten a suggestion for the pairing to be with either Rev or Alan! Who I both love!

Any other great suggestions?


	3. Chapter Three

Hey! Sorry for the wait on this chapter! School has been so demanding of me recently!

Thanks to the few of you who have added this story to your faves, and following it as well! I'm writing this for you guys now ^_^

Read and Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Same as usual all rights to this movie belong to Disney.

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Chapter Three: A Long Ways From Perfection

"Thanks for driving me here today, daddy-o!" Dahlia chirps animately pulling the strap of her bag a little more securely over her shoulder. Danny Black was also hauling another bag behind her as he laughed at his excited little girl.

"Of course! I've gotta' meet the coaches who fell under the 'natural Black family charm." He jokes shooting a smile his daughter's way. He could recall how happy his daughter was as she came bursting through their front door shouting about how she managed to _'tame the bull.'_ Only after letting the girl calm down did he find out that the new coach of the Titans was a sort of strict business type of man.

"Do I look presentable?" Dahlia asks gently laying her bag of valuables beside her. Her father stares and smiles at his little mini-me. She truly did look like him and he had to admit he held a little pride over that. Today she had her hair styled to make it appear shoulder length with a delicate white head band, adorned by a rose, going across her forehead. She had a dress that looked like it could be a two part ensemble. Her top was made of lightweight jean fabric, while her bottom half was more fluffy with layered sheer fabric.

"Of course you do, baby doll!" He asks pulling his daughter in for a hug, which she returned happily, "You're gonna' have to beat them boys away with a stick looking like you do!" He jokes and winks as he releases his daughter. Her only response was an eyeroll followed by a sarcastic smile at her father's constant teasing. She stopped to look down at her watch, she was early and for a good reason too! She was hoping she could get to meet some of the players to help memorize some of their names and faces.

"Dahlia?" She could hear someone ask causing her to glance up towards the voice to find a surprised Gerry Bertier and a confused boy to his left.

"Gerry! How many times have I told you to just call me Doll?" She asks placing her hands on her hips feigning annoyance. He in response just shot her his charming smile as usual and went to hug the strange, but lovable girl.

"Gerry, my boy! It's been awhile since I've seen you over." Her father greets as he shakes Bertier's hand.

"I'm sorry sir. Things have been pretty hectic recently." He apologizes to the stylish man in front of him. Hearing his friend clear his throat awkwardly he's quick to react.

"Right! This is my friend Ray Budds." He exclaims pointing to the shorter male next to him who simply smiled politely in response.

"It's nice to meet you! I'm Dahlia Black, and this is my father Danny Black." She introduces as she and her father shook hands with him as well.

"What are you doing here, _Doll?_" Gerry asks stressing the use of the nickname she seemed to insist he call her.

"Same reason you're here!" She responded casually causing the two boys in front of her to glance at each other in shock.

"You're coming to camp with us?" Ray spoke up glancing down at her bags. Dahlia looked to him and took in his appearance before nodding as a response. He was shorter than Gerry, but attractive if you could look past the obvious mean streak he looked to have. For now however, he seemed to be nice which she appreciated.

"You're not playing football with us are you?" Gerry asks hesitantly causing Dahlia's father to laugh.

"Don't doubt her playing abilities, son." He laughs out causing the two boys to stare at him in curiosity, "Her brothers both have played football for a majority of their life. She being the youngest and only girl still insisted on playing right along side them." He announced causing said girl to blush slightly.

"Don't judge me, boy!" She scolds once again pointing at Gerry with a half-hearted glare. She received an equally playful raise of arms from Gerry in response. After laughing a bit she decided to continue, "But no, I'm not playing football with you two. I'm the team's personal photographer!" She exclaims quickly snapping a picture of the two boys catching them off guard at the sound of the shutter going off.

"Good morning. Good morning. Good morning!" She heard a familiar voice greet as he entered the area. She seemed to hear this and quickly walk over to the owner of the voice.

"Is she really coming to camp, Danny?" Gerry asks lowly as he glanced over to Dahlia's father in surprise. Ray seemed to be just as shocked as he remained silent.

"Yessir. She loves football and really thinks this'll be a good chance at documenting something great." He responds soberly. Reaching over to cup Gerry's shoulder he stares at him long and hard, "You'll watch over my baby girl at camp, won't you? She may be a little butt kicker, but I still worry for her. It's a father's job." He asks with a slight smile at the end.

"You've got it Mr. Black." He responds dutifully with a determined nod. Danny squeezes the boys shoulder before mumbling, 'Good boy' under his breath. He goes and gives Ray a hard clap on the shoulder before leaving to follow his daughter who seemed to be hounding the Coach she spoke so much of.

"Awfully skinny playbook isn't it?" Dahlia caught wind of the conversation happening as she made her way over to the coaches. The man who spoke was presumed to be Coach Tyrell by Dahlia who chose to remain silent until the conversation was over once again.

"Yeah well I run six plays, split veers, like novacaine, just give it time it always works." Coach Boone responded not missing a beat. Dahlia raised her brows having a bit of a hard time catching that, he spoke like the wind he did.

"Coach!" Dahlia announces causing the three men to look her way.

"Well Ms. Black! Good to see you here early!" Coach Boone greets shaking the smiling girl's hand. She turned to Coach Yoast and shook his hand in greeting as well. Turning to the stranger, who seemed to be giving her a look crossed between curiosity and doubt, she smiled pleasantly.

"Dahlia! This is Coach Tyrell-" Coach Yoast begins to announce being cut off as Dahlia good naturedly thrusts her hand out to shake the man's.

"Coach Tyrell. You're in charge of the Special Team. It's nice to meet you! My name is Dahlia Black." The man in front of her raised both brows and shook her hand with a small smile.

"She'll be documenting our boys journey and taking their stats to help them out with future college draftings." Coach Yoast continues causing the man next to him to nod in appreciation.

"Yessir! Anyways I wanted to introduce my daddy to you all!" She exclaims motioning to her father who now stood behind her. He reached out and shook each of their hands with his signature smile on his face that, like Dahlia, showcased a single dimple on his left cheek.

"It's nice to meet you coaches. I'm Danny Black, this crazy little thing's father." He announces placing a hand on his little girl's shoulder. "I want to thank you for accepting her on the team." He says while nodding gratefully to the trio.

"It's no problem Mr. Black. We appreciate the offer she made and look forward to having her." Coach Yoast announces.

"Can't wait to see if she's as good as she claims to be." Coach Boone jokes as he stares down at the nicely dressed female who smiles impishly in response.

"Oh, don't you worry about that one. She's one of the best." Dahlia's father announces causing the coaches to nod in approval, "Anyways I have to go to work now. You be good kid, and don't cause too much trouble alright?" He tells his daughter before hugging her and kissing the top of her raven colored head.

"I wish you coaches luck out there! Bring us back a winning team." He says while shaking their hands once again and turning to leave. Boone was once again pleasantly surprised at the man's kind nature. He seemed to understand just where Dahlia had inherited her attitude from.

"Oh! Right! Coach Boone?" Dahlia asks catching the men's attention once again, "I was wondering if I could have a copy of all of your playbooks as well?" She asks now trying to situate both of her bags on each shoulder.

"Now, why would you need those young lady?" He asks her crossing his arms.

"Well, I figured if I know the plays I'll know who will be where at what time. It'll allow me to catch the best shots on the field!" She announces causing the coaches to nod after a bit of thought.

"That is a great idea. I'll work on a copy for you!" Coach Boone answers with an appreciative smile making its way on his face, "In the mean time however, at camp I expect you to be paying attention to their drills to catch an understanding of their play until I can get you that copy." He bargains with the girl who nodded cheerfully.

"Thank you Coach Boone! I'll be seeing you all on the bus! I'm going to get more info on the players!" She says while waving to the Coaches before making her way over to some of the other players.

"Nice girl." Coach Tyrell voices out causing Yoast to nod in agreement.

"Hi!" She calls out to a familiar bunch of people. They all glanced over to her in surprise at the sight of a girl who, by the look of her bags, were joining them at camp.

"Well, what's a fine little thing like yourself doing over here?" The one she remembered as Petey asked with a wide smile on his face throwing an arm around her shoulder in a playful manner. Much to the groups surprise the girl in front of them smiled in return to Petey's antics and laughed.

"I'm Dahlia Black, but you guys can call me Doll or whatever you like." She announced shoving Petey away playfully, "And you must be Petey Jones. Nice to meet you! I'm the teams photographer." She finishes holding out a hand for him to shake. Petey on the other hand was a bit shocked at the slim white female in front of him. She was quite the beauty and she was actually accepting them as they were. It surprised him having been accustomed to being treated harshly from people of her color, however here she was all smiley and playful with him.

"Well, alright Baby Doll!" He announces smiling once again grabbing the hand held out to him, "I see you've heard of Ol' Petey here have you! Well little Ms. Paparazzi you make sure you get my good side, alright?" He says speaking in third person, "And by my good side, I mean _all _sides." He jokes while raising her hand to kiss charmingly, this causes all the guys around him to clown on him. She laughs at his actions before patting his head lightly.

"Of course! You were subject to Coach Boone's interrogating on the first day, right?" She asks causing the boy in front of her to deflate as the others around him begin to laugh, "I hope you still think football is fun." She spoke softly while shooting him a smile as he glares at her half-heartedly. She looked around at the group of people and spotted another familiar face who seemed to be staring at her curiously.

"You're Jerry Harris, right? Quarterback, if I remember correctly?" She asks holding out a hand for him to shake as well. His eyebrows shot up in moderate surprise before gripping her hand and shaking it.

"Yes m'am." He responded smiling kindly at the pretty faced girl in front of him. "But you can call me Rev, everyone else does." He said causing her to nod. The other guys around her who all were of one race, besides Louie that is, began to introduce themselves to the girl they all thought were_ 'mighty fine'_. While she was greeting people she cringed hearing Coach Boone mock 'Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin' in front of everyone. However, Coach Boone's wrath didn't stop there he marched on the buses and pulled everyone in there out and rearranged everyone's seat to make sure everyone was sitting next to someone of a different race. She was impressed to say the least at the Coach's persistence.

"Where do I go, Coach?" She walks up to Boone after all players were in the bus. He seemed to glance down at her and send her a smile.

"Well now, I believe there's a spot on the Defensive bus waiting for you." He responds pointing over to one of the two in response, "Now you'll be sitting next to someone of the same race, but I trust that you won't let that cloud your mindset." He tells her with a hard pat on her shoulder, which she responded with a smile and nod.

Walking up to the bus she couldn't hear anyone talking. It was completely silent and she cringed at the awkward silence that filled the air. As she entered, she received a kind smile from the driver, which she returned before turning to search for the only free seat in the bus. She spotted Gerry staring out the window, and boy he did not look happy at all. She also saw that right behind him sat a lone white boy. She walked over with a smile and watched the boy glance up at her in surprise before quickly scooting over toward the window to allow her to sit with a bright grin.

"Thanks." She responded smoothing her dress down as she sat. The boy next to her had blonde hair that was short, but longer than Gerry's. He was cute with his colored eyes, and seemed to be a genuinely nice guy.

"No problem. Are you going to camp with us?" He asks staring at her for a moment.

"Mhmm-" She hummed shooting him a smile that seemed to catch him off guard. "I'm Dahlia Black, the Titans personal photographer." She responds causing him to smile back.

"She prefers to be called Doll though, Bosley." Gerry seems to voice in from his spot in front of them while turning to look at the two. The boy next to him glanced over irritably before moving to face away.

"You two know each other?" The boy next to her asks as he glances from her to Gerry in a suspicious way.

"He's just my boring neighbor. Nothing special." Dahlia responds causing Gerry to reach over and mess her hair up. She sticks her tongue out at him when he turns around, but quickly pulls it back in when he mentions that he can see her. The boy next to her laughs and then reaches out a hand for her to shake.

"I'm Alan Bosley. Defensive Tackle." He says as she shook his hand, "You like photography then?" He asks making an obvious assumption.

"Football and Photography are my life." She responded dreamily causing Alan to chuckle softly at the female, "Do you know anything about photography?" She asks catching him by surprise.

"Well, I know a thing or two, but not much. I have a video camera back at home." He responds earning himself an interested smile from the beauty he had in front of him. He silently thanked the Lord that his seatmate hadn't made it today, so he could have this opportunity.

As the bus began to move the silence consumed everyone once again. As the time ticked on by Dahlia seemed to be nodding off and Alan kept having to hold in his laughter as he watched her head bob every so often. Catching him chuckling at her she shot him a playful glare before hitting him in the shoulder.

"It's not funny!" She whispered, however it seemed to echo off the walls of the bus loudly because of the extreme silence. Alan only proceeded to have to hold in another fit of laughter as he rubbed his shoulder slightly in mock pain, "As punishment for your laughter you will now have to serve your duty as my personal pillow." She announces gently placing her head on the shoulder she hit.

Alan seemed to stiffen a bit, but was quick to relax. He liked this girl. She was a pretty little thing, and spoke with an interesting, but somewhat attractive accent. She was friendly and goofy and he could instantly tell that the boys would warm up to her nicely, considering he already did. He chuckled to himself as he heard groans and complaints of 'Why'd Bosley get so lucky,' from his fellow white teammates. Movement from his right after an hour or so suddenly caught his attention.

"_Cause baby there ain't no mountain high enough~_" One of the black boys reached over to cup the one next to Gerry's shoulder. The singing caught Alan's attention, being a fan of music. It seemed that it caught a once snoozing Dahlia's attention too. She lifted her head off of Alan's shoulder and smiled at the tune he was singing.

"_Ain't no valley low enough~_" He continued to sing getting the boy in front of him to join in. A now awake Dahlia smiled widely as she recognized the one singing to be Big Blue! She turned to see Alan start wiggling his shoulders to the tune and bumped into her in a joking manner. She smiled and joined him in a miniature dance party to Blue's singing.

"_Ain't no-_" A slap on his shoulder caused the sound to stop and so did Alan's and Dahlia's dancing.

"Blue! Shut up. I don't want to see your smiling and shuffling, and hear all your minstrel show singing on this bus." The grouchy boy in front of Dahlia told him causing Blue to shoot him a disappointed glare. She turned to Alan and frowned causing him to look towards the grouchy guy's direction with a hard stare. Dahlia raised an eyebrow at this, she couldn't tell if this guy was as racist as some of the other white's on the bus. He didn't seem to mind the singing Blue, so she was interested to see if he was glaring at Gerry's seatmate because he was black, or because he was rude.

"You too." The boy continued looking at the boy who was just joining Blue in singing. Things seemed to then settle back into awkward silence much to Dahlia's dismay.

"You got that right." Gerry voices up causing their attention to turn to him. His seatmate, who Dahlia didn't know the name to yet, turned to stare at him for awhile.

"You can shut up too." He says causing Gerry to turn and stare at him. Alan and Dahlia watched as they seemed to glare at each other before turning away. She let out a sigh and mumbled something about 'having a long way to go' before returning to her position on Alan's shoulder to get some more rest.

When they arrived to camp Dahlia was softly snoring on Alan's shoulder. He had to admit her snoring was much more like raspy breaths and was cute in a dorky sort of way.

"You enjoying yourself there Alan?" Gerry asks from his position as he stood up to exit the bus. He caught the soft look Alan was shooting towards the Titan's Doll just moments ago. He had to admit he found himself doing the same. He didn't have any siblings, but he considered Dahlia to be a sister he never had, much like the Coach's daughter, Sheryl.

"Hey! Sleeping Beauty! Get up you're drooling all over Bosley." Gerry shouts poking a finger into her side causing her to pop up quickly with a squeal.

"I did not!" She announces horrified looking down to see Alan's shoulder was dry. She glared at Gerry who was quickly making his way out of the bus. She jumped up and quickly went after him managing to hop on his back just as he exited the bus causing him to stumble slightly. She smacked the back of his head causing him to shout out in protest before letting him go to walk over and grab her bags. Alan soon exited the bus and laughed at Gerry who was rubbing his head giving Dahlia looks of despair.

"Let me help you with that." She heard someone offer from behind her as she once again struggled to even out the weight of both bags on her shoulders. Turning around she spotted a hesitant looking Blue. She smiled at him brightly before handing him the bag filled with her clothes, choosing to hold her cameras on her own.

"Thank you." She responded causing Blue to visually relax once he was sure she wouldn't be down right nasty towards him, "You're Big Blue, right?" She asks catching him off guard. She knew his name!

"Yes m'am! Blue Stanton at your service, baby!" He announced with his jolly voice. She smiled and followed him in the direction of the buildings.

"I'm Dahlia Black, but you can call me what you want." She decided to say considering he seemed to have a nickname for her already. "I liked your singing by the way." She decided to add in remembering him singing on the bus, before she had fallen asleep.

"You did!?" He asked surprised glancing down at her gleeful face. "You listen to that type of music, baby girl?" He asks her before Petey, who was walking next to Alan threw his arm around Dahlia's shoulder once again.

"Of course! Don't you know that this little Baby Doll right here has some _soul_ power?" Petey shouts in causing Blue to nod and smile in respect towards the girl who grabbed Petey's head in a headlock and started to give him a noogie while laughing at his wild protests.

Once they arrived at their meeting place, Coach Boone introduced her to the rest of the boys and spoke of her duties to everyone earning a look of interest from most of the boys in the room. She expected it as much, she was the person that could basically make a person look good, or look horrible. After that was all said and done they were all sorted into rooms.

"Dahlia?" Coach Yoast asks causing the girl to look up from her bags to smile at said Coach. "This is your roommate. Meet my daughter Sheryl." He motions to a little girl who smiles brightly at her.

"Well! It's an honor to meet you, Sheryl!" She replies shaking the small girl's hand. Sheryl had a nice firm handshake, she seemed rugged and probably loved football just as much as her daddy.

"It's nice to meet someone as interested in football as I am on the team." She responded causing Dahlia to smile at the little girl. Once she was sent off to unpack her things Coach Yoast asked Dahlia to stay back for a bit.

"Now, usually I room with Sheryl at camps. However, due to the fact that you both are females I decided to room you with her. I'm trusting that you'll watch over her for me, will ya?" He asks Dahlia. She smiled at the father's concern for his little girl. It reminded her greatly of her own father. Coach Yoast had a bunch of sons with his team, but only one daughter and that meant the world to him.

"Don't worry Coach. I've got her." She responded before shouldering her bags and following the young girl calling out for her to follow. The two girls got along perfectly. Sheryl seemed to have taken an easy liking to Dahlia especially after she offered to play football with the small girl some time.

Shouting could be heard from the down the hall catching both girls' attention. Sheryl sat up in bed with a look of curiosity while Dahlia opened the door of their room to peak out.

"Fight!" She could hear a familiar voice shout out. Looking back to Sheryl she could see some interest in the little tomboy's eyes.

"Stay here Sheryl." She warns the small girl who crosses her arms and pouts, but stays put. Dahlia sends her a smile before booking down to see who on Earth was fighting. Running past a familiar face to bolt into the crowded room she's yanked back before she can enter.

"Whoa there." She heard the person holding her say before letting her go when she stopped struggling. "I wouldn't go in there if I were you." Dahlia glances towards the room filled with boys before looking at the concerned face of Rev.

"Whose fighting?" She asks Rev while flattening her dress down a tad having been ruffled by her running.

"I'm not quite sure, but I do know that this here room belongs to Julius and Gerry." He responds standing in front of her trying to keep her away from the quickly growing fight. She could feel her anger spike at the thought of Gerry being hateful towards his roommate. However, she didn't want to jump to conclusions when she wasn't sure what exactly happened. She catches a glimpse of Rev trying to keep her from harms way and smiled warmly at him. He _was_ a good guy.

"Do you know what started the fight?" She asks laying a hand on his shoulder to catch his attention. He turned to look back at her with a sad smile.

"I'm not too sure, Dahlia." He reveals with an apologetic smile. She returns it before patting his shoulder and pushing past him.

"Thanks for protecting me Rev, but I think I got this." She says while hurrying past him as he shook his head at her as if telling her not to get involved. She pushed and pulled boys away from each other as she shoved her way towards the main fight. Most would go to hit her, but instantly stop in their tracks once they saw who was pulling them away. They were not about to hit someone who could make or break their college football career, and this stat taker/photographer could do just that as Coach Boone and Yoast had explained to them earlier.

"Alan!" She called out grabbing a hold of his arm causing him to look her way with wide eyes. He was surprised to see there were only a couple of guys fighting now as the rest seemed to back away slowly.

"Who started the fight?" She asks him. He quickly fixed his hair and tried to straighten himself up before answering.

"Gerry-" Was all he could get out before she tore away from him with an angry look in her eyes. He was quick to follow her incase she got hurt with the few boys still fighting. Dahlia shoved past a few more boys before reaching to the source of the fight. She quickly grabbed one of the two, but got caught by his elbow as it flew back creating a nice split on her lip. Alan flinched as he saw her receive the hit ands could be heard amongst the boys who were no longer fighting. Gerry, who sent the elbow out, instantly stopped fighting with the other colored boy.

"Doll! I'm So-" His apology was quickly cut off as a quick jab was sent to his face successfully breaking his nose. He swore and backed off quickly grabbing at his nose that started to drip blood as Ray and his buddies went to his aid. The other boy, known as his roommate Julius, quickly stood up.

"Are- Are you alright?" He asks in a low voice looking down at Dahlia as she massages her hand softly. Catching a glimpse of the nasty cut and quickly forming bruise on her face he glanced away guiltily. No girl should be getting hit in the face like that, it just wasn't right.

"What is going on here!" The voice of Coach Boone could be heard as everyone quieted down to stare at him.

* * *

"A bunch of tough guys." Coach Boone snapped as he paced the room filled with players and coaches.

"You look like a bunch of 5th grade sissies after a catfight." He continued to berate the bunch of now sweaty and bruised boys. Dahlia was sat next to Sheryl on some steps licking her now split lip, as Sheryl cringed every time she looked at it playfully. Dahlia would have smile at this if it didn't hurt so much.

"You got anger thats good. You gon' need it, son." He stopped to stare at Julius who stared straight back at him with a hard look on his face.

"You got aggression thats even better. You're gonna need that too." He then stated looking at Gerry whose nose was now put back in place and only bruised slightly as he glanced down guiltily. He had promised Dahlia's father that he'd look out for her, but he had been the one to harm her. He felt horrible for it.

"But any little two year old child can throw a fit." He continued glaring at the rest of the boys that stood before him, "Football is about controlling that anger. Harnessing that aggression into a team effort to achieve perfection." He continued even stopping to glance back to Dahlia on the steps behind him.

"Coaches will cut a player if he thinks he's not up to snuff." He stated calming down some to stay in one place and put his hands on his hips. "If they think he's hurting the team." He continued much softer now. Silence followed this statement. Dahlia finally stopped toying with her now cut lip when Sheryl elbowed her to tell her to stop messing with it already.

"This is a public school program I will never ever cut a player, who comes out to play for me. But when you put that uniform on. That Titan uniform you better come to work." He announces pointing at his own chest for emphasis. He quickly glanced down at Dahlia before warning her, "That means you too Ms. Black." She glanced up at him and attempted a small smile to tell her she heard him loud and clear.

"We will be perfect." He boomed as the statement echoed off the walls of the cathedral like room. "In every aspect of the game. You drop a pass, you run a mile. You miss a blocking assignment, you run a mile." Dahlia cringed at the strict nature of this Coach.

"You fumble the football… And I will break my foot off in your John Brown hind parts." He announced causing Dahlia to begin to chuckle a little along with Sheryl. "And the you will run a mile. Perfection!" Coach Boone finished his speech. Dahlia could see that his recent statement bothered Coach Tyrell for a moment and shrugged it off. She assumed it was because of the statements blunt nature. She honestly thought it was hilarious.

"Let's go to work." He finished excusing everyone. As they began to leave to their rooms for the night Dahlia waited until everyone left before getting up herself.

"Now what happened here?" Coach Yoast asks walking up to the two girls. Dahlia glanced at the older man and smiled softly careful of her lip.

"I got hit trying to separate the boys." She explained calmly almost as if it were no big deal.

"Yeah! You should've seen her daddy! When Bertier caught her she went and broke his nose!" Sheryl chirped in happily from behind the taller girl.

"Sheryl! I told you to stay in the room!" She quickly scolded the younger girl while ruffling her hair in a good manner. Yoast stared at the two interact and smiled, Dahlia would learn that Sheryl doesn't always do what she's told.

"Now what is this I'm hearing about you getting hit?" Coach Boone asks as he walks over to their new photographer to catch a look at her lip.

"It's really nothing Coach! I grew up with older brothers, so this is just a minor wound." She once again waved off licking her wounded lip once again, "It'll heal."

"Good. You can take a hit." Boone responded with a laugh clapping the girl on her shoulder.

"I think this belongs to you." Dahlia turned to look at the person who spoke to see Coach Hines. She looked at what he was holding out to her to see two shirts that looked to be her size.

"Well it's a bit small for you, but I'm glad to take them off your chest." She responds causing Hines to laugh.

"What is it?" She asks taking them and holding them out in front of her to see them better. She grinned once she saw they were red collared T.C. Williams shirts much like the ones the coaches were wearing. "I get my own!?" She asks excitedly clutching the two articles close to her chest.

"Well of course! You a part of the Titans family now aren't you?" Coach Hines explains before patting the girls head and leaving the room.

"I hope you did as I told you and packed appropriate clothing, Ms. Black." Boone spoke causing Dahlia to give him her complete attention.

"Yes! I packed some pants and shoes Coach." She responded causing both men and Sheryl to smile.

"Well, alright. You'll be adding this to your wardrobe as well." Boone announces tossing her something which she catches by instinct before it hit her in her face. Opening the folded material up she finds a simple white jersey staring back at her. Confused, she looks to Coach Boone with furrowed brows. Coach Yoast seemed to display the same expression as Boone began to chuckle.

"I'll expect to see you wearing that for warm ups tomorrow. You didn't think I'd let you off lightly after intruding in on someone's private conversation, especially my own, now did you?" He spoke, referencing back to their first meeting. Dahlia seems to sag visibly a bit at the thought of having to work out so intensely and mumbled, 'I said I didn't mean it.'

"You will be joining the boys for half of their workouts every other day we are here at camp. The rest of your days will be spent helping out where it's needed and taking shots of the boys." Coach Boone warns as Dahlia simply nods dejectedly in response.

"Alright now! You two go get ready for bed. We have a long day ahead of us." Coach Yoast says causing the two girls two bid them a goodnight before walking towards their room.

"I can't believe you got a Jersey before I've ever had one." Sheryl pouted as they walked to their room. Dahlia glanced down to the younger girl before laughing at her face.

"If you want the consequence that comes with it, you can have it." She responds causing Sheryl to scoff lightly and tell her to, "Stop being such a baby." Causing the older girl to glare at her slightly.

"Uh… Doll?" A voice calls out causing the two girls to look back to see Bertier standing there. Sheryl seemed to look back up to Dahlia in concern.

"Go on Sheryl. You can bathe first. I'll be there in a few." She tells the younger girl who nodded and continued to their room. When Sheryl was further down the hall Dahlia glanced back to stare at Bertier expectantly.

"Look…" He began as he walked closer to her. His head was hung in shame and he seemed at lost for words. He was always taught by his mama to never hit a girl, and he had broken that rule today. Dahlia was confused by his demeanor.

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry about hittin' you earlier. I didn't mean-" He tried to say before a finger was placed on his lips causing him to halt. Dahlia was smiling at him with her bruised lip and all.

"It's alright Gerry. I ain't mad at you no more." Dahlia said softly taking her finger away as Gerry continued to look troubled, "I can take a hit and besides I broke your nose afterwards, I think I should be apologizin' to you." She responds causing Gerry to gently touch his bruised nose and let out a chuckle.

"You've got one hell of a left hook there, bruiser." He jokes causing them both to laugh. "So, you sure you aren't mad at me?" He asks once again.

"Nah, I can never stay mad for too long after I blow off my steam." She responds throwing the shirts she was holding over her shoulder. "Just promise me one thing." The request caused Gerry to raise an eyebrow in wonder.

"What's that?" He asks after a bit of silence.

"Don't go fightin' with any more of your teammates over petty things, or so help me I will break more than just your nose." She warned dangerously causing Gerry to flinch at the thought.

"What if they deserve it?" He asks her as she turned to walk away.

"It depends on your definition of "deserves it," cause the color of their skin should **not** be one of those reasons." She states shooting a quick glance back at Gerry. She had found out later from Alan that the fight was over a poster Julius had hung up, which caused Dahlia to take a few moments for herself to calm down. "Night Bertier! Hope your pretty face heals up nicely! Wouldn't want your girlfriend to dump you." She jokes as she leaves.

Gerry stared at Dahlia as she left him standing alone in the hallway. He didn't know how to respond to that, he just didn't understand why she was always sticking up for _their_ kind instead of her own.

Julius who had heard their exchange in the hall from the opened door of his room was surprised by the girl's words, and could feel a small smile appear on his usual hard face. This girl seemed different than the rest. What type of girl ran right into the middle of a brawl? She even took a hit without shedding no tears, and went and broke his cracker-headed roommate's nose. Now she was standing up for them? She had more heart than any other white person he's met by far… And he had to admit, he enjoyed the change of pace.

* * *

Alright! Hope you enjoyed!

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	4. Chapter Four

I'm happily surprised with how much attention this story is getting! Thank you guys for reviewing, favoring, and following this story!

You don't know how much it makes me want to write faster for you all! It's nice to know that people are reading this!

Hope you enjoy this chapter! Please continue being great readers!

Disclaimer: I own none of the original character, they all begin to Disney!

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Chapter Four: Practice Makes Perfect

The next morning was literally hell for poor Dahlia. She was never a fan of waking early and having a loud and persistent little roommate to make sure she was up in time for _warm-ups_ was not pleasant. At All. Little Yoast who had decided to jump on her until she had woken up earned herself a semi-gentle tackle and tickle torture.

"So, how do I look Sheryl?" Dahlia asked lazily while tying her hair up into a messy bun on the top of her head. The smaller girl stared at her older roommate from her bed and smiled in approval. Sheryl decided that she liked Dahlia dressed this way much better than the way she was before with all them dresses and such. She had these long white fitted waist-high pants that tied in the front much like the shoes she herself wore everyday. She had these black shoes that seemed to be some type of converse and the white plain jersey she had was a tad big for her, but she tied it to the side to help with that.

Dahlia had looked like she belonged on the field with the guys and Sheryl respected that. It made her feel less different than most girls who wore dresses all the time and fussed about their hair seeing Dahlia like this. It strangely gave her a sense of comfort and familiarity knowing she wasn't so _different _from all girls.

"I like you this way better." She finally answered softly causing Dahlia to stare at her with some concern. She'd never heard the usually rambunctious girl speak so quietly. She smiled at the smaller girl before brushing some of her fringe away from her eyes and to the side.

"Well, thank you kindly." She responded as Sheryl happily joined her as she exited the room.

Once Dahlia was out on the field she groaned at the heat that beamed down on her. A long whistle could be heard from the group of guys who were huddled together, catching her attention. Dahlia rolled her eyes and turned to glare at Petey, who had been the one to whistle.

"Now would you looky here!" He announced loudly catching the attention from the other guys who turned to stare as well, "Why are you dressed like _this_ Baby Doll?" He asks throwing his arm around her shoulder like he usually did, causing a few of his fellow white teammates to glare harshly.

"Not that I don't appreciate the view or nothin'." He adds as an after thought causing Dahlia to laugh a little at the way he was moving his eyebrows at her suggestively.

"Man, would you get away from her! She don't want no man shorter than her hittin' her up like that!" Blue stepped up pulling Petey away from her and in a slight headlock. This got a couple of others to laugh as Petey struggled to get away from Big Ol' Blue.

"Morning Dolly!" Louie greeted her childishly with a hug that literally swept her off her feet. "Why are you dressed out like us today?" He asked while putting her down. Dahlia, in reply sighed and reluctantly began to stretch for the day to come.

"Coach Boone said I'm suppose to work out with ya'll for a bit." She grumbled still tired from her rude awakening. This statement caught the attention of more of the guys.

"What!" Came Gerry's voice from some bits away. Alan and Ray had also heard what she said and were surprised as well. Ray seemed a tad irritated, while Alan couldn't help but smile a bit as he realized there would be something to stare at while he suffered through all this. Not that he'd ever say that aloud.

"What are you smiling aboutt?" Ray asks. This catches Alan off guard as he quickly dropped the smile he didn't realized he had on.

"Nothing man." He denies causing Ray to scoff lightly before smirking at him mischievously. He never did like to mention when he was crushing on a girl to the guys. They always seemed to get the girl he wanted in the end anyways.

"You sure it ain't got nothing to do with little miss _doll _over there." He says sarcastically. Alan grew quiet causing Ray to laugh before punching him in the shoulder.

"Alright, alright!" Alan gave in, "It _may_ have a little something to do with her."

"She is pretty fine isn't she? I wouldn't mind gettin' with that." Ray responded casually causing Alan to furrow his brows slightly, "Too bad she hangs around with them niggers." He added with a disgusted sneer.

"Yeah…" Alan answered hesitantly. Gerry, who wasn't too far from them, had growled as he heard what Ray said. He knew just what Ray had meant and would make sure that he would definitely _not_ be "gettin' with that" if he had anything to do with it. He knew how Ray treated girls, and Dahlia would not be one of those poor girls.

"Why?" Rev asks joining Dahlia in stretching out for the day.

"It's my punishment." She responded casually as Rev raised an eyebrow her way. She saw his look and bit her lip before continuing, "Lets just leave it at I was eavesdropping on things I shouldn't have." She answered in a low mumble causing Rev to shake his head slightly at her before laughing good heartedly.

"Man! Don't laugh at me! I'm going to die now!" She said seriously before pushing him slightly as her demeanor cracked and she began to laugh as well. The guys around her just stared curiously at the two laughing figures.

"Alright boys!" Coach Boone called out catching everyone's attention, "And Ms. Black." He finished catching sight of her. He seemed to stare for a second before nodding in approval at her choice of clothing.

"Let get down to business!" He called out before blowing on his whistle sharply.

Dahlia had no idea how hard Coach Boone would run her, but this was too much. She had to admit Sheryl was a close second in the scariness factor. That little girl was intimidating and she seemed to be keeping a close eye on her in specific as she shouted out at them and called out who ever was lagging behind. Coach Boone and Coach Yoast never made her do any of the contact warm ups, but she was there alongside the Titans as they did sit ups, up downs, sprints, and all that good stuff.

Despite suffering through all this she had found the Coaches words from the sidelines to be entertaining. Coach Yoast had once shouted out at one of players to jump on a ball like a starving man on a Christmas ham. She had laughed quite loudly at that one in particular despite the pain it caused her already exhausted body.

By the time Coach Yoast had pulled her to the side she was tired, sweaty, and could barely feel her legs.

"You alright there?" He asked as he put a hand on her shoulder. Dahlia looked up at him from her hunched over position and smiled, which painfully re-split her bruised lip. She was out of breath and could feel how her body would burn tomorrow, but other than that she felt good.

"I'm alright, Coach." She responded while standing up straight, "You guys run a hard camp out here." She complimented while gesturing down to her now completely dirtied attire.

"Hah, well don't you worry I'm sure those stains will come out." He joked as he patted her shoulder. Dahlia smiled in response before turning to stare at the guys who were now being taught plays.

"I'm guessing I should go and grab my camera?" She asks causing Yoast to smile slightly before nodding at the dirt covered girl. She smiled and ran off to retrieve said camera from her room.

While back in her room she decided that she should just stay in her filthy clothes. It'd be a waste of clean clothes if she changed now. Once on the field she could see that the guys were set up to run a play, and decided it would be best to get down to photographing them.

The guys were running hard and Dahlia could tell that they would be exhausted after practice. She was shocked to see how easily Coach Boone would yank someone off to the side when they fell behind and bluntly tell them to go home. She was thankful that she didn't need to run through complete practices with them cause she was sure she wouldn't make it. She was fit, she just wasn't **that** fit.

"Fumble Fumble Fumble!" Was heard as Dahlia pulled away from her camera with a devastated sigh. That would have been a perfect shot of Petey!

"What is wrong with you! Why are you fumbling my football?!" Boone shouted at a panicked Petey who glanced around nervously. This caught Dahlia's attention and she glanced up at the usually happy boy being once again told off by Big Bad Boone.

"Well if my blockers were better." He mumbled trying to defend himself, before flinching at Boone's loud harsh reply of "Your blockers!"

"Your blockers ain't got nothing to do with you holding the ball!" He shouted getting progressively closer to Petey's face. "Did your blockers fumble the football or did you fumble the football!"

"I did sir." Petey answered his voice muffled by his mouthpiece. Everyone remained silent as they watched Boone chew him poor Petey out.

"Right! How many feet are in a mile?" Boone asked catching Dahlia off guard. She could hear Petey struggle to answer the question and couldn't help but agree with his confusion. There was no way she'd be able to answer that on the spot like that! She could see Boone smack Petey in the head a couple of times while repeating the question.

"5,280 feet! You pick this ball up and you run everyone of them!" He answers the question himself before throwing the football away. Petey's eyes were glued to the ground as he turned and ran like he was told to. "You're killing me Petey! Killing me!" He shouted at Petey's retreating figure. Dahlia was stunned and felt horrible for Petey. She felt anger for Coach Boone, but let it slide and just thanked God Almighty that at least he didn't just kick Petey off the team. He did say he wanted perfection. She could see that Coach Yoast was bothered by how Petey was being treated as well.

"I suppose I've taken enough pictures for today." Dahlia told herself hesitantly before gently placing her camera down on the bench. Sheryl, who was sitting next to her, glanced at her in question.

"Watch this for me, I'm going to run for a bit." She told Sheryl before running to catch up with Petey. Coach Yoast smiled at said girl as she ran past him to catch up with Petey, he hoped she could cheer the guy up a bit.

"Petey!" She shouted as she caught up to him relatively quickly. She frowned as he didn't smile or turn to greet her at all. He must have been really down.

"Petey?" She asked again as she caught up to his side. He still refused to look at her and seemed to be gripping the ball even tighter.

"What is his problem!" Petey finally snapped, although a bit out of breath from running, "He's always doing that! He singles me out! I don't do well under all that pressure!" He finished shooting a frustrated look her way.

"It's alright Petey. You're okay." She told him calmly, but was surprised by the harsh glare he sent her.

"It's not okay! It's not enough we get heat from _your people_ on the team, I have to deal with him constantly on my back! The very one I'd think to have it!" He snapped causing Dahlia to flinch at his cruel words, "I can't deal with this. I've got half a mind to ditch this stupid camp." He finishes deflating slightly as his steam was let out. She remained silent as she tried to think of something to say.

"I'm sorry Petey. You don't deserve that kind of treatment." She replied deciding to forget his little offensive comment. He was angry and frustrated, so she'd let it slide. This only got Petey to scoff irritably before picking up his pace. Dahlia let out a heavy sigh before glancing up to the heavens and picking up her own pace to catch up.

"I'm serious. No one does. However, I don't think you should quit Petey." This caught his attention as he glanced at her quickly. "You're a great player! You're quick on your feet and think on the field just as fast as you run. That's a valuable aspect as a player. Boone sees that and that's why he's so hard on you. He wants you to be perfect, which isn't fair to expect of you, but I know that you can do it." She encourages causing Petey to smile softly before lowering his pace again. Dahlia was grateful that he let up on his pace, she was losing her breath much too quickly.

"You serious?" He asked her quietly. Looking at him Dahlia could see he was now looking at her and smiled at him.

"Of course I'm serious dummy! I'm suppose to keep stats of every player! You're fast! One of the fastest on the team." She finished causing Petey to nod. Dahlia continued to run with Petey until he ran his whole mile and he even hugged her gratefully afterwards, sweat and all. Coach Yoast who had watched their exchange from afar was glad that she could pick the boy up out of his funk.

Lunch quickly came around and Dahlia was excited to finally be able to eat after the exhausting day in the sun. She knew she was nowhere near as tired as the guys and wondered how on Earth they lasted through half the day.

While looking for a seat she found that Gerry was waving her over, but a look from Coach Boone had told her that she should help with the integrating a bit more. She smiled at Gerry apologetically before rejecting his offer. This brought a slight frown to his face as he saw her walk over to where Lastik was just sitting down with the rest of the colored guys.

"Would you look at those traders?" Ray had whispered from his side. Gerry had glanced back at him and Alan who was eating curiously next to him.

"And would you look at that. She's a no good nigger lover too." Ray continued on nastily, "What a shame she'd a been a perfect-"

"Shut up Ray!"

"Enough man!" Both Gerry and Alan cut in angrily. They both didn't appreciate what he was about to say about the Titan's only female member.

"What you doin', man?" Julius asked as Louie sat down. Dahlia was about to do the same, but stopped hearing the intimidating male say this.

"Eatin' lunch." Louie asked naively.

"I see you eatin' lunch." Julius responded looking at Louie's plate, "but, why you eatin' over here? Why don't you go on over there. Eat wit' your people." He finished while swallowing what was in his mouth, gesturing over to the side which consisted of all the white members of the team.

"Man, I don't have any people. I'm with everyone, Julius." Louie answered with a shake of his head and smile. Dahlia decided now was the time to sit in the only other available seat, which was next to Rev.

"I agree." She adds in announcing her presence to the rest of the players, who all but Julius, smiled at her. "Besides they're a bunch of close-minded punks over there." She added jokingly causing the other's smiles to widen. Julius stared at her for a moment and remembered what he heard her say in the hall the other night.

"Yeah! They're just a light skinned brother and sister!" Blue who was next to Julius exclaimed shaking Louie's hand and smiling Dahlia's way.

"Yeah, and I'm a dark-skinned cracker." Julius mumbles causing everyone to snicker.

"That's the spirit!" Dahlia chirps in cheerfully causing the others to snicker a little harder.

"Come on Julius! They're just two other blessed children in God's loving family!" Rev states with a smile reaching out to hug both Louie and Dahlia. She laughed and gave Julius an innocent angelic smile, much like Louie was doing. Suddenly Blue began to hum 'Amazing Grace' and threw an arm around Julius who quickly became agitated.

"Come on Blue. Lemme-" He began but stopped and sighed irritably as Petey and the rest joined in with Blue's humming. Dahlia smiled and began to harmonize with the rest as Rev began to preach for the Lord to 'soften big Julius Campbell's heart'. Julius just remained silent and rolled his eyes a bit at the rest of the fools he called his teammates.

"Hey! It's nice to have a female here to add in the higher vocals." One of the other guys announced after they were done with their playful preaching. Dahlia smiled before continuing to eat her food.

"Tell me about it! Petey's voice just ain't cuttin' it no more is it!" They all joked teasing the youngest on their team as he shot glares at the rest of them. Dahlia began to laugh when one of them had their drink come up and out their nose being caught off guard with that joke.

Back over to where Gerry them were Ray could once again be seen glaring at the rest who were now laughing and preaching good naturedly again.

"Look at them. They're disgusting." He announced catching Gerry's attention once again as he glanced over in Dahlia's direction.

"And Rev? He better be praying I'll block for his black behind." He continued letting out a sarcastic laugh. This caught Gerry by surprise.

"Yeah… But Ray, if you don't block for him you're not going to start." He answers with a warning tone.

"I'll start." Ray states nodding his head, "I'll just bide my time." He says before continuing to eat his food. Gerry stared at him long and hard before shaking his head and continuing to eat as well, choosing to remain silent.

"Lastik!" Boone called out causing the table to become quiet as Louie stood up to stand in front of him straight and at attention. Dahlia raised an eyebrow and decided to listen to what was going to happen.

"I want you to tell me something about one of your black teammates." Boone asks him as they stood with everyone's attention in the room.

"Sir yes, sir! I'm rooming with Blue, sir! And I notice he wears those leopard spotted underwears, bikini style, sir!" Dahlia, who had been drinking as that had been said, nearly choked on her beverage before laughing quite loudly at a blushing Blue.

"That's definitely going in your stats!" She announces causing the rest of the guys to crack up even more at poor Blue who had ducked his head down. Boone seemed to nod his head at Lastik's statement, it wasn't what he was expecting that was for sure, but it was something.

"Okay, maybe somebody who's not your roommate." He decided as the laughter finally began to come to an end.

"Sir, I eat lunch with Rev." Dahlia looked over to see that Rev was shocked, but a gentle smile made its way to his face. She nudged him slightly as his smile grew wider.

"That's Jerry Harris, sir. People call him Rev because he's always praying and he won't abide a foul tongue, sir!" Louie shouted causing others to shout out "Rev!" in response. Boone kept a straight face, but Dahlia could tell that he was happy with Lastik.

"And what is the Rev going to do after high school?" He asks causing Louie to laugh and shake his head.

"I don't know. Go to college and all that I guess." He answered lowering his tone.

"What about you, you going to go to college?" Boone asks.

"Oh, not me Coach. I ain't a brainiac like Rev." He answers truthfully.

"You think you got a future in football?" Boone continues.

"Ah heck no! I just figure if I gotta be in school, I minus well hit some people while I'm at it." He asnwers causing a few to chuckle.

"Alright, I like that. A self aware man I like that." Boone says before leaning in to whisper some things to Louie. Dahlia furrowed her brows a bit at what Louie had said, and decided that she would document as much as she could for Louie and make sure that he would go to college. Whether it was on a football scholarship, or not, she would make sure he'd get in. He deserved that.

"So what kind of music does the Rev like?" Coach asks once again grabbing everyone's attention with his loud echoing voice.

"Oh! Me and Rev both dig on the Temptations." He answers before spinning and beginning to sing, "I know you wanna leave me! But I refuse to let you go!" Dahlia smiled and began to bob her head as Rev began to sing along with Louie. After a bit of nudging from Rev, she smiled and began to sing as well which the others followed soon after. She glanced away from Louie's figure to see how Gerry was reacting.

Gerry was smiling and chuckling lightly despite himself causing Dahlia to smile gleefully. Gerry was a great guy, but she couldn't be his friend if he continued to act so hateful towards another group of people. It just wasn't right. She knew that if anyone on the 'whites only' side was to begin accepting the blacks on this team, Gerry, who was their captain, needed to do that first.

Gerry caught Dahlia's eye and she quickly stuck her tongue at him while continuing to dance causing him to laugh out loud. Alan who was just behind Gerry was dancing as well which caused Dahlia's heart to continue to swell with happiness. Perhaps Gerry didn't need to be the first accepting one.

"Okay, alright." Boone finally answered as he began to smile and laugh, his stoic mask finally cracking. "Stop begging." He jokes looking out at the rest of the room as it grows quiet once again.

"Anybody else!" He challenges pacing the room slightly. He glances at Dahlia for a slight bit before shaking his head, he knew she knew more people than her own race, so he wasn't going to ask her.

"No volunteers?" He asks while his smile began to disappear. Dahlia looked around the room and frowned as everyone began to avoid eye contact.

"Campbell?" Boone questions causing said boy to glance up before shaking his head in surprised at the offer.

"Bertier?" He asks. Dahlia glanced at him in hopes, but sighed when he just stared at Coach Boone, before looking at his food.

"No huh?" Boone verified as he began to stare the room down in disappointment. Dahlia knew this wouldn't end well.

"Each one of you will spend time everyday with a teammate of a different race." All eyes were now on Boone as he spoke, "You will learn about him and his family. His likes, his dislikes. You will report back to me until you meet everyone of your teammates. Until that time we go to three a day practices." This got many of them to groan and complain. Dahlia's eyes widened as she realized that that meant she would be warming up with them longer than usual.

"If you continue to ignore each other we go to four a day practices. Now is there any part of this you don't understand?" He announces as everyone continued to complain. Dahlia was irritated, she just couldn't understand why everyone was so against liking each other! It wasn't that hard!

While she was walking back to her room she could see and hear a bunch of the guys 'getting to know each other'. Boone had told her she was excused from this activity, because she knew a bunch about the guys already. She was also thankful to hear that she'd no longer be training with the boys because of their punishment and now would be warming up with Sheryl. She didn't know whether she should be relieved or terrified.

She had walked past Ray and Petey sitting together and couldn't help but roll her eyes as Ray continued to insult Petey with questions like, "You do have a Dad, right?" She knew that guy had a mean streak. And boy… was it beginning to show. She'd have to keep an eye on him. She looked over at Petey and could tell he was growing very agitated at Ray's snide remarks. Rolling her eyes she decided to walk away before she said something out loud.

She was tired and could feel her body starting to ache from earlier today. She used to run with her brothers, but in truth that was years ago, and they did tend to carry her on their backs most of the way. She shrugged and decided to shower now that they were excused for the day. Walking past the many rooms leading to her own,she could hear country music playing from somewhere in the hall and began to laugh as she heard, "Does cruel and unusual punishment mean anything to you!" She couldn't help but think that had sounded a lot like Blue… Which reminded her… She needed to add that little known fact about his infatuation with leopard spotted bikini styled underwear to his bio.

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Alright! Hope you guys liked this one! I know this one was a little slow and boring, but be patient please!

Review/Fav/Follow! It shows me people are reading and enjoying it!

Btw! I've gotten votes for pairings! They're at a tie!

Rev: 2 | Alan: 2

So, come on silent readers! Help me out please?


	5. Chapter Five

Hey! Don't worry guys. I didn't forget about you all! I'm just really busy with finals around the corner! I will be updating weekly though, so don't you worry!

Thank you all for being so patient with me! I love you guys!

***** I did post this chapter earlier, but it seems you all really want me to remain historically accurate when it comes down to Dahlia's photography as well (which really is NO problem at all!), so I fixed the chapter! Hope this is better and more accurate for the time frame. Thank you guys for letting me know! I'll try to pay more attention to those things in the future! *****

Disclaimer: I don't own anything!

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Chapter Five: Picture Perfect

The next day came all too quickly for Dahlia and she was pleasantly surprised with how work-outs went by with Sheryl. She worked her hard, there was no doubt about that, but it wasn't nearly as bad as she thought it would be. It mostly consisted of workouts that would help with building up her speed and stamina. She even had to run with weights tied around her ankles the entire time. She quickly decided she absolutely hated that part.

"You did good today, Black!" Sheryl exclaimed smiling, addressing Dahlia like she did with all the other guys on the team. Dahlia who was too busy catching her breath flashed her a thumbs up in response before collapsing on the ground to take a seat.

"You think so?" She finally asks from her position on the ground after finally catching her breath. Sheryl laughed and sat next to her to watch the boys work out across the field.

"Yeah! With me training you every morning here at camp you'll be faster than those guys by the end of it!" She assures the dark haired beauty beside her. Dahlia smiled before ruffling Sheryl's hair and standing up to dust off her clothing which was similar to her outfit yesterday.

"Coach Boone sure is working them hard." Dahlia whistled as she watched the guys go. Sheryl was silent for a bit before nodding her head at the statement.

Taking photos for that day's practice wasn't very eventful and that saddened Dahlia a lot. She was supposed to be showing Coach Boone her progress every night, but recently she's doesn't think she had caught anything worth while. Coach Boone had patted her back the other night and simply told her that things would improve as the boys improved. She was thankful for the reassurance, but she'll be a little anxious until that time comes. She was worried she was losing her touch and mentally cursed as she realized the only way she'd find out was after she developed the film later today.

"Hey, Sheryl?" Dahlia asked her small friend as they walked back to the rooms from practice. Sheryl glanced up to the girl she was warming up to and considered a big sister she never really had and frowned slightly. The look Dahlia was giving her told her exactly what she needed to know.

"Do you have to do that in our room?" Sheryl whined slightly as she looked at Dahlia in protest, "That liquid you use smells funny and it stinks up the entire room!" She complained while pinching her nose at the mere memory of the smell. This caused Dahlia to smile wide and laugh at the girls complaints.

"I know they smell funny Sheryl. I'm sorry I'll lock myself in the bathroom this time." She offered causing Sheryl to glance up at her in interest at the bargain, "You just have to go somewhere else to use the bathroom while I'm in there, alright?" Dahlia asked while holding her hand out to seal the deal. Sheryl thought about it for a second and nodded before grabbing the out held hand.

"Alright, deal!" She announced cheerfully. Sheryl had to admit she thought it was cool watching Dahlia develop the film despite the funny smelling liquids used. She had asked Dahlia previously why she had to put the film in a covered container while developing, Sheryl had wanted to actually see the process of the images appearing, and she simply stated that the film would literally die in the light and had to be developed in the dark.

"You think maybe one day I could help you?" Sheryl asked carefully. Dahlia was quick to answer with a hug, which surprised the younger girl.

"Of course you can help me!" She stated pulling away and messing the girl's already hectic hair, "I could use the help every once in awhile."

For the next couple of hours or two Dahlia had locked herself in the bathroom to begin developing the photos. Sheryl was simply reading some comics to pass the time, usually she would go out and play catch with Dahlia after the boys practice, but that wouldn't be happening today. Knocking on their room door brought Sheryl's attention up to see Gerry push the door open slightly.

"Hey, Bertier!" She called out happy to see the familiar and brotherly team captain. Gerry smiled and came in to lift the small girl up in a good hearted greeting.

"Hey Sheryl!" He greeted back while putting the laughing girl down.

"You guys need to shape up out there!" She quickly began to scold him causing him to chuckle lowly at her sudden change of attitude, "Don't laugh! Seriously! You're upsetting Dahlia! Letting her down!" She told him frustrated. Gerry quickly stopped chuckling, what did she mean by that?

"Dahlia? Why is she upset?" He asked Sheryl looking around for her missing roommate, now that he thought about it he hadn't seen Dahlia since practice ended.

"She came here to take pictures of you all, but you're all playing like a bunch of sissies out there!" She scolded causing Gerry to frown at the statement. This girl was cruel it wasn't his fault the others played like they hadn't played football before.

"Aren't you ashamed of the way you're all playing! You're their leader! And you're going to continue leading this team right into the ground if you don't do something about it!" She continued to lecture him. Gerry sighed and rubbed his head in exasperation.

"Okay Sheryl I get it." He stated trying to bring a halt to the Mini-Coach's rant, "I'll try harder to whip the boys into shape." He tried to appease her. She seemed to stare at him hard for awhile before sighing and nodding.

"You better or I'll do it!" She told him in a huff causing him to laugh and pat her head.

"Now, speaking of Dahlia, where's she at?" He asked looking around the room, "I haven't seen her in awhile." Sheryl seemed to roll her eyes and point at their bathroom, Gerry seemed to widen his eyes in horror at the thought.

"She's been in _there_ this whole time?!" He asked her in concern.

"Well yeah, she's developing her photos." Sheryl revealed causing Gerry to visibly relax, he wasn't exactly thinking that's what she was doing in there. Before Gerry could ask something else a loud elated shout could be heard from behind the locked door.

"Yes!" Dahlia cheered to herself as she _finally_ came across a nice shot when the film finally dried. It seemed that despite the disappointing day she had a few good shots, but two of them really stood out to her. Squinting at the small negatives she identified that they were of Julius and Rev. She quickly cut the long reel of film into strips and slipped them in the safety of a clear plastic pocket of some sort. Holding them up to the light once more she smiled at her success.

"Sheryl!" She shouted excitedly as she opened the bathroom door to reveal a now clean bathroom. To her surprise she came face to face with an amused Gerry Bertier instead, "Gerry!" She gasped out.

"Hey!" He said catching her before she ran straight in to him. "What have you been up to?" He asked casually causing a smile to spread wickedly on her face as she held up a couple of clear pages of negatives. Sheryl had hopped off her bed and up to Dahlia in glee grabbing one of the sleeves to look at what Dahlia had caught.

"I was developing." She answered simply. Gerry raised an eyebrow and let her go as he stared at the black squares she showed him.

"Uhh…" He seemed to say not really sure what he was looking at. Dahlia rolled her eyes before holding it up to the light revealing the images. Gerry laughed at his own expense and stared at the little things in slight delight. These things were pretty cool.

"Look! This one is of you." She pointed at one of the small square causing Gerry to squint to try and see it.

"Can I have it?" He asked her causing her to lower the negative.

"Well, if you take me to develop these after camp I'll give it to you." She bargained causing Gerry to smile and nod. Dahlia thanked him and seemed to recall just why she was so excited while developing the photos.

"Julius!" She shouted causing Gerry to stare at her in confusion. "I need to find him!" She said while pushing past Gerry to exit the room. Sheryl stared up at Gerry who stood there for a moment with a strange look on his face. He sighed and shrugged it off deciding he'd talk to her later.

"Campbell!" Dahlia had called out as she spotted him in the hall. He stopped walking and turned around confused. When he saw her running up to him he sighed and shook his head reassuring himself that she wasn't as bad as the others. He'd be kind to her as long as she was kind in return.

"Hi!" She greeted him quickly once she caught up to him. He could see some of the other white boys stare in their direction which irritated him slightly. Why couldn't they mind their own business? He nodded in response and watched as she excitedly looked down at what was held in her hands.

"I wanted to show you this! You did great in practice today." She finally said as she continued to look through the negatives in her hand. Julius raised both his brows in surprise at this statement and opened his mouth to thank her until a page of them were shoved towards him.

"Here look!" She stated giddily holding them up to the light. He hesitantly grabbed the page and continued to hold it up, squinting to get a closer look at the small image portrayed.

"You- You took this?" He asked her as he stared at the negative in awe. This girl made him look good, real good, from what he could see at least. He looked dang well near professional! From what he could see of the image it was of him tackling one of them white boys quite violently. It was like she stopped time to capture this single moment.

"Of course I did!" Dahlia responded happily as she watched him for a clear reaction, "Do you like it? I'll only use things in your profile if you like it." She asks suddenly growing slightly nervous. This caught Julius off guard. He didn't think she'd be fair while making everyone's profile, he thought she'd pay more attention to them white boys like Bertier. This girl really was something.

"You're pretty good at this." Julius finally responded while handing the page back to it's owner, who was still staring at him curiously. "I like it. You should keep it." He continued on as Dahlia smiled gratefully at him.

"Thank you! I'm glad you like it! I'll give you a copy when I print them!" She tells him while taking it back. She seemed to look around in search of something before turning back to stare at him.

"Would you happen to know where Rev's room is at?" She asked.

"Why do you need to know that?" He asked curiously before trying to recall which room was Rev's himself.

"Well, I caught a nice photo of him as well! I wanted to get his approval on it too." She answered sheepishly. Julius seemed to be still for a bit before nodding and pointing towards a door a bit down the hall.

"Thanks!" She told him once again and began to walk away.

"Hey!" She heard Julius call out. She slowed her pace and turned around to stare at him in question.

"Thanks. I really appreciate what you're doing for us." Julius said gratefully with, much to Dahlia's surprise, a gentle smile directed towards her. She smiled and nodded in response before continuing to Rev's room. Something told her he was thanking her for more than just the photo.

"Nobody in my family ever went to no college!" Dahlia heard a voice coming from the room. The door was opened so she didn't feel like she was prying into their privacy. She stayed behind the door frame and listened in a little more.

"I'll tutor you Louie I told you." Comes the calm reply from Rev. Dahlia furrowed her brows and chose to reveal herself by leaning against the door frame and hiding the negatives behind her back as she listened to Louie continue to panic. She could see Rev look to her quickly from over his bible before glancing back to Louie in concern.

"I'm white trash! I ain't gonna' get no C+ grades!" He continued to go on ignoring Rev's attempts to calm him down. Dahlia crossed her arms, careful of the negatives, and continued to stare. Rev seemed to shoot her a slightly exasperated expression.

"I'm just down home, no good, never going to no college, white trash man! Alright?!" He finally finished throwing his hands up in the air. Dahlia frowned and decided to say something and help out.

"Louie…" She calls out softly catching his attention relatively quickly. He seemed extremely upset, and if she didn't know any better he seemed to be about to cry as well. Rev looked to her curious to what she was going to say.

"You're nothing like white trash Louie." She soothed placing the negatives she held on a bed while walking over to give him a hug. He seemed to stay still for a bit before lowering his head and hugging her back. Rev closed his bible and placed it beside him while sitting up a bit to watch what else would happen.

"You have a soul as good as gold and ain't no education gonna' teach you that, Louie." She told him gently while rubbing the big teddy bear's back as he began to calm down. "You'll be able to get those grades you wanted! With Rev tutoring you," She glanced over at Rev who smiled in assurance, "and me helping you out, there ain't going to be a college in sight that won't take you in." She finishes causing Louie to back up a tad and look at her in surprise.

"You really mean that?" He asked her after a bit of silence. She smiled brightly at him before nodding enthusiastically. There was just something about the way she smiled that made both Rev and Louie believe in what she had said.

"Of course I do! I promise you that! And I never break a promise!" Louie smiled and glanced over at Rev who simply nodded as well.

"You're going to help me too?" Louie asked staring at his little Dolly in front of him.

"I probably ain't as smart as Rev," She responded casually while looking over at Rev who began to rub his neck in slight embarrassment, "but I'll help you with every other way I know how!" She reassured him earning herself a hug so tight it squeezed the air right out of her small frame.

"I'm sorry I interrupted your bonding time." Dahlia apologized to the two friendly players when she was finally released from a now cheered up Louie.

"It's fine Dahlia." Rev notes as Louie waves it off as well. "Did you need something?" He asks moving so that he was sitting at the edge of his bed. Dahlia seemed to suddenly remember what she came in for and grabbed the negatives before excitedly going to sit next to Rev, who scooted over to make some room.

"I wanted to show you the picture I caught of you, _Mr. Quarterback_!" She answers while plopping down on the bed next to him. He smiled and moved a little closer to peer over her shoulder at the small images. Even Louie stood up and tried to catch a glimpse of the pictures she took as she filtered through the pages of them.

"How's your lip doing?" Rev asked catching sight of the fading bruise on the side of her lip. "I told you, you shouldn't have gone in there." He seemed to mumble causing her to glance over and smile widely before flinching as her lip split.

"Well, it was fine until just now." She joked glancing over at Louie and Rev with a smaller smile than before. "It's getting better though!" She told them before licking her lip in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

"I just showed Julius his, and he liked it." She continued happily causing the two boys to glance at each other in moderate surprise. They were impressed by the shots that she captured despite them playing so horribly out there. The negatives looked to be crisp and clear. It was no lie, they weren't playing too well considering no one really like each other out there. Yet, she caught pictures of them that highlighted each player as if they were golden!

"Here you go!" She said handing one of the pages over to Rev as Louie moved closer to look as well. Dahlia sat there quietly watching the wide eyed pair stare at the sheet of negatives while holding it up to catch some light. "I hope you like yours as well." She said beginning to grow a bit nervous.

Rev was surprised. He knew he wasn't the best player, but this picture sure made him feel like it. The guys around him were all on the ground in the act of tackling each other, only he could be seen standing and aiming to throw. The sunset in back of him made the lighting dramatic enough to make it appear like he was about to throw a winning pass. It was an amazing picture and he felt a wide smile begin to grow on his face.

"You sure know how to take photos, Dolly." Louie tells her causing her to laugh and thank him graciously.

"Do you like it, Rev?" She asks him after taking in his silence. He smiled at her and gave the page back.

"I love it! I can't wait to see what you catch of us once we're on the field." He told her shaking his head impressed.

"If we ever get on the field." Louie added in sourly. Rev and Dahlia chuckled at his response and patted the big guy's shoulders.

"You guys will get there." Dahlia states while standing up. "And I'll be there to capture all of your winning moments along the way." She replies causing the two to give her doubtful looks. They were horrible right now and weren't sure they'd win at all with where they were at now.

"Just… Give the others some time." She said after taking in their doubting looks, "They'll come around and see how stupid they're acting." Walking towards the door she turned to look back at them and smiled.

"If not, I'm sure Coach Boone will beat some sense into them eventually." She said as she left the room. Rev and Louie glanced at each other and began to chuckle.

"I pray we survive till then." Rev said while rubbing his sore shoulders from practice. They were being worked to the bone and he wasn't sure if they'd live through much more of this.

"Dahlia _sure_ is nice." Louie seemed to speak his thoughts with a soft smile on his face. "Not many people are as nice as her here. Plus she's talented with that little box she's always carrying around." He continues on causing Rev to agree with him.

"She sure is, Louie." He states a bit wistfully, before suggesting they continue with their so called _"mandatory"_ bonding time.

* * *

After looking around for awhile Dahlia finally let out a sigh as she caught sight of Coach Boone talking to Coach Yoast and Hines. Coach Tyrell was no where in sight, but that didn't bother Dahlia too much considering she was just relieved to have finally found who she had been searching for in this huge college campus.

"Coach!" She called out as she happily jogged over to the three men who looked over to her in response with smiles.

"Well if it isn't Ms. Black." Coach Boone greeted her before patting the seat next to him for the photographer to take. She quickly obliged and placed the sheets of negatives onto the table.

"I've come to show you the shots I've gotten today. I've got a few good ones, but there are two that I'm really proud of!" She chattered off excitedly causing the coaches to look at each other with slight grins. This young lady had a way of warming up in other people's hearts. "Do you mind taking a look at them now? Or should I come back later?" She asked glancing over at Coach Hines and Yoast who looked curious.

"No, now come on I'm sure they'll be alright with it, show us what you got." He chuckled good naturedly while gesturing to her work. She smiled brightly before passing them out amongst the coaches who proceeded to hold them up and squint to see what she caught. After looking at them Boone pat her on the shoulder and told her she was doing a great job, the other two remained silent.

"Now make sure you give me a copy of those photos when you get the chance!" Coach Boone called out to Dahlia as she was leaving. She turned to smile and give him the a-okay sign before leaving the room. Boone had particularly enjoyed a few of those photos and decided to add some keepsakes to his books. He turned to the other coaches who were silent throughout the whole ordeal.

"So?" He asked them chuckling at their astonished faces. "Didn't I tell you she was good?"

"That girl is better than good!" Coach Hines announced with a booming voice while laughing in joy. Coach Yoast seemed to smile as well.

"I'd say we're lucky to have her." He stated causing Boone to glance over at him with a smirk.

"Don't tell her that. Don't want it to go to her head." He jokes causing the others to chuckle as well.

"Well dang! Let it go to her head! She's great! I can't wait to see what she actually catches during games." Coach Hines voices while scratching his chin in wonder.

"I think I just thought of something else for her to do to give us a competitive edge." Coach Boone announced causing the two others to glance at him in wonder. "She did mention she owned a video camera, right?" He thought quietly. The coaches stared, but Boone just smiled and waved it off deciding to keep his plans to himself until the time came.

* * *

As Dahlia made her way back to her room she had a small skip to her step. Perhaps Coach Boone was right about things getting better as the boys got better. He seemed to like more pictures she had taken today than previously.

"Will you hurry up and get off the phone I gotta' call my girl too, man!" She could hear shouts and groans coming from around the corner. Curious she sped up and turned the corner to see a bunch of the guys waiting in a long line. Confused, she glanced around them to see Gerry at the front of the line talking on the phone. The only phone on campus too. She laughed to herself at the ridiculous sight before her catching the attention of a few of the guys who turned and greeted her.

"Oh… Oh… Don't do this right now." She could hear Gerry say to whoever was on the other side of the call. Dahlia guessed it was his girlfriend he told her about once. She walked passed the guys to stand by the few in front. She could see Blue, Petey, Ray, and Alan were the first few in line.

"Eyy man, what is this Wild Kingdom?" Petey finally asked causing Gerry to turn around and yell "Shut up, ya'll!" Dahlia chuckled again at just how flustered he was getting and walked up to the guys.

"What's going on?" She asked them as groans were continued to be heard from the others.

"Hey! No cutting Black!" One of the guys from the back shouted out at Dahlia jokingly causing said girl to pull at her eye and stick her tongue out at them obnoxiously. This caused the others to chuckle at her behavior.

"Shut it! I ain't got no _beau_ to call like you girls!" She insulted the rest of them causing them to glare at her jokingly as she laughed.

"Anyways, before I was _rudely_ interrupted. What's going on?" She asked the few in the front.

"Gerry's been on that phone for eternity!" Alan turned to tell her with an exasperated expression on his face. He looked tired and his hair was all messed up from constant pulling at as he grew more frustrated with waiting.

"He's talking to his girlfriend, Emma." Ray added in with a huff as well. Dahlia seemed to shake her head and listen in to what Gerry was saying. He seemed to be trying to whisper things, but it sounded like he was getting a little anxious.

"Well what's taking him so long?" She asked them as Petey shouted at Gerry some more causing him only to become more agitated.

"Emma's probably teasing him." Ray answered turning to smirk back at her, "Probably trying to get him to say something embarrassing." He said laughing slightly as Alan began to chuckle as well. Dahlia raised an eyebrow and shrugged.

"Really? What could be so darn embarrassing that it makes him get like _that_?" She asked while gesturing to Gerry who was hunched over and glancing back at the guys hesitantly. Before anyone could answer her, she heard the answer to her question.

"I love you, sugar." She glanced at Gerry with wide eyes as all the guys began to laugh hysterically at him as he quickly hung up the phone. Petey began to mock him as he stormed away sporting a nice shade of red on his face. The only one who seemed to have a bit of composure left was Ray, but even he had a slight smile on his face.

"_Guys_." Dahlia seemed to mumble before chuckling to herself and walking away from the bunch of guys who were still laughing at Gerry's expense.

As she walked away, Ray quickly elbowed Alan causing him to stop laughing and look at him while holding his side in pain.

"Didn't you hear what she said?" He asked causing Alan to grow confused. Ray rolled his eyes and crossed his arm with a smirk, "She doesn't have a guy. _She's single_." He said, his smirk only growing wider. Alan seemed to stare at him before growing irritated.

"Man, she wouldn't go out with you!" Alan snapped causing Ray to stare at him surprised, "Besides, you've already got a girl you're talking to." Alan caught himself and tried to defend his statement. Ray seemed to roll his eyes and chuckle darkly after a bit of silence.

"Yeah, you're probably right. She loves _their _kind anyways." Ray retorted acidic-like while looking over to their darker skinned teammates. Alan once again furrowed his brows at Ray's response growing uncomfortable with the tone used.

"Besides you probably want her all to yourself, don't you?" He states looking over at Alan with a knowing glance.

"What are you talking about, man!" Alan scoffs while fixing his hair nervously. His cheeks were heating up and this caused Ray to laugh at his expense before shoving him jokingly.

* * *

Alright! Sorry for the long waits before updates! When finals are done I'll try to update more frequently! I'm also sorry for the mistakes made previously with the camera. I fixed it and hope it more to your liking.

Please continue to show your support by Reviewing/Following/Favoring! It gives me strength XD

Here's the updated-updated votes for pairings!

Rev: 4 | Alan: 5 | Petey: 1

Don't be afraid to PM me if you have any requests or suggestions as well! I'm nice I promise!


	6. Chapter Six

Hey Guys! Long time no see, right? Sorry, I had finals for school and it was hectic.

However, I am done for the semester and will be trying to update regularly again!

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter Six: Ups and Downs

"What was that!" Sheryl shouted while groaning and pacing back and forth. Dahlia sighed in frustration too as she lowered her camera away from her face. There were literally no good shots being caught today.

"I can't get one decent shot." She muttered at Sheryl's side. Since she finished her workouts for the day and picked up her camera the guys seemed to be unable to run any plays without problems. She could see by the coaches faces that they were beginning to lose their patience as well.

"I'm not surprised you can't catch anything. With them playing like that even a professional like you wouldn't be able to catch anything!" Sheryl answered then continued to rant as she angrily threw her hands up as the guys continued to miss blocks. Dahlia shook her head as she watched a few of the guys closely. She knew they were doing it on purpose, for through her camera she could see them do it.

"They're suppose to be a team. They're only hurting themselves by doing that." She spoke to herself disappointedly as she shut her camera off. It didn't seem like she'd be getting anything today anyways.

"What are y'all doing!" The sharp voice caused Dahlia to look up from her spot to see the players huddled up. Gerry, as their captain, seemed to be giving them a lecture. She sat back and shook her head knowing this wouldn't go well.

"Forty-four stack, you're suppose to know your jobs. Campbell you're playing selfish show-off football, hold your man down." Gerry snapped pointing directly at Julius. Dahlia raised an eyebrow and leaned forward slightly knowing that this _definitely_ wasn't going to end well now.

"Don't you single me out like that. What you think I'm stupid or something?" Was Julius's reply. Dahlia shook her head at the beginning of another argument between the two roommates. She had to admit, Julius _was_ slacking a bit, but he wasn't the only one. It really wasn't fair of Gerry to point him out like that.

"Listen. I'm the team captain and I don't need you up on my face all the time!" Gerry answers back while slamming into Julius' face mask. The boys began to shout and fight once again causing Dahlia to stand and walk over to the coaches who weren't having it anymore. Boone blew his whistle and let out an exasperated sigh, Dahlia shook her head as well. The heat must be getting to them.

"I got it." Coach Hines announced stepping forward to break up the fight. "Ya'll didn't come out to practice, cause champions pay the price! Looking like a bunch of bums out here!" He shouts out while walking forward. Dahlia stepped up between Boone and Yoast and sighed catching their attention.

"This is ridiculous." She announced causing the coaches to nod in agreement. She knew camp wouldn't be easy, but this was just insane. The boys seemed to fight more than they play recently.

Practice seemed to continue on after that and only intensified as the boys attitude continued to fire up. Coach Boone was not happy with his team, and it didn't help when Dahlia had explained to him that she wasn't able to catch any good shots at all considering most of the players seemed to be _purposely_ missing their assignments. She was relieved of her photographer duties for the rest of the day, but she remained on the field to watch the guys.

"Coach we need a water break! We've been out here all day!" Someone shouted from the group as they continued waiting to be told to run forward and block the person across from them. Dahlia who was sweating and not even moving agreed with Blue. They probably really did need water.

"What did you say?" He asked after sharply blowing on his whistle. He got into Blue's face and Dahlia could tell that Blue knew he messed up. Coach Boone really could be an intimidating man.

"I said we need a water break." He repeated himself a bit softer.

"You need a water break?" Coach Boone asked still up in Blue's face. "Water is for cowards. Water makes you weak. Water is for washing blood off this uniform, and you don't get no blood on my uniform. Boy, you must be outside your mind!" He shouted causing Dahlia to flinch. Honestly, if she could she would have given the boys some water a long time ago. By looking at the other coaches she could tell that they probably felt the same way. It was hot out today and the guys were probably on the verge of heat stroke.

"We are going to do up downs until Blue is no longer tired and thirsty!" Coach announced.

"He's kidding!" Dahlia practically yelled. Sheryl who was standing next to her shook her head already knowing that this Coach Boone was no kidder. Dahlia seemed to furrow her brows in concern before shaking her head, "They're going to die. I ain't going to be writing no stats, I'm going to be writing eulogies." She muttered to herself while rubbing her face in discontent.

After a while of watching the boys continuously being tortured with up downs, Coach Yoast walked up to Sheryl and Dahlia, who seemed to be playing some catch with a rogue football. Sheryl seemed to be purposely making Dahlia run around for the ball causing him to chuckle to himself. Catching sight of him, Dahlia held the ball and jogged over with a slight smile on her face.

"What's up Coach?" Sheryl asks her daddy while giving him a slight hug. Dahlia smiled at the two and waited to hear his response. She thought it was cute the way even Sheryl called him Coach.

"Well, I was thinking you two could get some water ready for the guys." He announced causing Dahlia to frown as she looked at the guys who seemed to be barely able to continue on. She could see how tired and slow some of the guys were getting and she didn't have the heart to watch them suffer much longer.

"I think that's a good idea." Dahlia replied looking back to stare at Coach Yoast with a concerned expression, "He's going to kill them, they need a break." She complained hoping that he could perhaps put a rest to Coach Boone's reign of terror. He was a good coach, but this was a little too much for Dahlia. Coach Yoast stared at her for a bit before nodding, he himself was beginning to worry about his boys.

"I know. I'll try to put an end to this." He agreed causing Dahlia to smile gratefully his way. "You just worry about getting that water to them, they'll need it."

"Thanks Coach Yoast." She said gratefully before running over to help Sheryl set up the water station. Yoast smiled as she ran away, he noted that Dahlia was indeed improving with her speed. Sheryl had said that she was and he now believed her.

"How much cups do we need to make?" Sheryl asks as she continued to fill cups.

"Just keep them coming those boys will need a lot of it." Dahlia said while ripping open another pack of them, "Who knows how much they'll drink." Sheryl nodded and began to fill the cups with a bit more vigor. Dahlia stared out to the field as she heard Yoast yell out Boone's name. They seemed to be whispering things to each other, but Boone continued to blow that infernal whistle making the boys drop down and up quickly.

Finally it appeared that Coach Yoast got through to him as he blew the final whistle. A collective sigh of relief could be heard from the guys as they all instantly ran over to get some water. One of them however, instantly dropped to the floor pulled off his helmet and proceeded to throw up. This pulled at Dahlia's heart and she quickly grabbed a cup and began to walk over to the fallen figure.

"Where are you going!" Sheryl called out amongst the mass of boys who surrounded her. Dahlia glanced back before smiling and waving her off. She was also slightly impressed how the boys seemed to be waiting patiently for a cup from Sheryl.

"You'll be fine! You got this! I gotta take care of one." She called while gesturing over to the poor player who was still hunched over and heaving. Sheryl seemed to understand and gave her a thumbs up.

Running over to the figure she was surprised to find it was Alan. She felt bad for him and found herself slightly angry that Coach Boone had worked them so hard. She hesitated for a bit, but eventually reached out and grabbed his helmet so he wouldn't have to hold it up anymore. She then kneeled down next to him rubbed his back as he continued to heave a bit.

"It's okay Alan. You're alright." She found herself saying in an attempt to comfort him. She didn't like seeing him like this, it hurt to see anyone she cared about suffering or in pain. She was weak in that sense. When it seemed like he was finished he finally leaned back to sit down completely and turned to look back at Dahlia ashamed and embarrassed.

"You're not suppose to see me like this." He seemed to groan while quickly wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, "You probably think I'm disgusting and weak now." He complained while covering his face mortified. Dahlia sat down next to him in silence before a soft smile made its way on her face. Why was he so worried about what she thought of him? He was sick and he was worried what she thought? It confused her, but it was cute of him and she couldn't help but laugh slightly.

"What makes you think that?" She asks while tugging on his arms slightly to reveal his face again. He was red and she wasn't sure if it was because he was blushing or from all the heat. She decided it was because of the heat and exhaustion as he finally removed his hands. She handed him the cup of water and he took it while refusing to look up at her.

"You saw spewing chunks! You don't think that's disgusting?! No one else threw up." He complained frowning slightly while staring down at the cup of water resting in his lap. He always seemed to be the weakest of all the players and this frustrated him to no end, especially because his father expected him to be just the opposite. Dahlia frowned noticing he was intentionally avoiding eye contact much like Petey had done before. She rolled her eyes at this and bumped into his shoulder slightly.

"I don't think you're weak or disgusting." She told him softly, when he continued to stare at his cup she continued, "I'm impressed that you held out that long even though you weren't feeling well. Just because you threw up doesn't mean you're weak, you pulled through and that's all that matters." This got Alan to glance up at her causing her to smile at him.

"Really..." He asked not completely convinced. She nodded and pushed the cup his way telling him to take a sip. He complied and began to sip the water slowly so that his stomach wouldn't reject it.

"Wait your turn!" They both heard from the water table. They glanced behind them to find the water table being flipped as another fight broke out. It looked like Ray had been the one to yell at Rev, and Dahlia found herself shaking her head. She knew that guy was no good. Sheryl was yelling and throwing cups at them, which almost brought a smile to her face. Dahlia let out another sigh as she began to stand up to help break the fight up.

"Thanks for caring." Alan spoke up causing Dahlia to glance back at him. "You know, taking care of me… No one else even bat an eyelash my way." He gave her a tired and slightly dejected look causing her to smile and mess his hair up a bit to help cheer him up. It was sweaty, but she didn't mind since it was to be expected. This guy was growing on her.

"Don't worry about it. Just stay here and drink your water." She told him before walking away. She stopped after a couple of steps and decided to tell him one more thing.

"Oh! And Alan?" She asked causing him to glance at her again while sipping on his water realizing just how thirsty he actually was. "You're pretty cute when you're embarrassed." She told him while shooting him a sweet smile. This caused him to choke slightly on his water, which made her laugh before turning and continuing to walk away. After clearing his throat he stared at her as she continued to walk away with a ghost of a smile on his face.

Once the boys were excused Dahlia stayed back for a bit to help clean up the mess from the fight before making her way back to the dorms. Most of the guys were gone, but there were a few of them left. She had turned a corner and stopped when she saw Gerry and Julius bump into each other. She widened her eyes and went back to hide around the corner and listen in to their conversation.

"Alright man listen." Gerry said in a low voice after glancing around a bit, "I'm Gerry. You're Julius. Let's get some particulars and get this over with, alright?" Dahlia smiled a bit but continued to listen carefully. She hoped this didn't end in another fight, it was beginning to get a bit old.

"Particulars?" Julius asked getting a confirmation from Gerry, "No matter what I tell you, you ain't never gonna know nothin 'bout me." This seemed to irritate Gerry as he began to protest.

"Hey man listen! I ain't running anymore of these three-a-days, okay!?" He flat lined. Dahlia smiled some after that statement. It seemed Boone had this in mind the entire time. The boys would rather get to know each other, despite the race difference, than run anymore of those exhausting and tortuous workouts.

"Seriously, what I got to say you really don't wanna hear, cause honesty ain't too high on your people priority list, right?" Julius responded. This was an interesting statement. She didn't quite understand the saying, but frowned when Gerry seemed to grow even more frustrated with Julius' calm response.

"Honesty! You want honesty?" Gerry seemed to grow louder making it easier for Dahlia to hear what they were saying, "Honestly, I think you're nothing," Dahlia clenched her jaw at the rude statement, but instantly calmed when he continued, "Nothing but a pure waste of God given talent, you don't listen to nobody man. Not even Doc or Boone! Shiver push on the line every time and you blow right past him! Push him, pull him, do something! You can't run over everybody in this league, and every time you do you leave one of your teammates out to dry. Me in particular!" He shouts while smacking his own chest adding emphasis to his statement. Dahlia was pleasantly surprised with what Gerry said, he had actually complimented Julius in a way. Gerry was right, Julius was slacking and was one of the many players she caught letting someone through.

"Why should I give a hoot about you?" Julius asked still calm. Dahlia sighed at the statement and felt herself deflate a little.

"Huh? Or anyone else out there? You wanna talk about a waste you the captain right?"

"Right."

"Captains suppose to be the leader, right?"

"Right."

"You got a job?"

"I have a job."

"You been doing your job!" Julius asked getting louder.

"I've been doing my job." Gerry confirmed just as loud. It was quiet for a bit and Dahlia could feel her nerves begin to get the best of her as she wanted to pop her head out around the corner to see what was going on.

"Then why don't you tell your white buddies to block for Rev better, because they have not blocked for him worth a blood nickel, and you know it!" He shouted shutting Gerry up for a bit. Dahlia was stunned as well.

"Nobody plays! Yourself included. I'm suppose to wear myself out for the team? What team! No… No, what I'm going to do is - Imma watch out for myself and I'm gon' get mine." Julius' words made Dahlia sad. He had a point. They were not a team and this made Dahlia frown just a tad. Dahlia decided that although it was wrong of Julius to play for just himself, he was in the right.

"See man." Gerry seemed to say in a let down voice, "That's the worst attitude I've ever heard."

"Attitude reflect leadership, captain." Julius spoke after a moment of silence. This shut Gerry up real quick and Julius walked away. Dahlia remained silent and childishly cheered for Julius' sick burn in her head. She could hear a defeated sigh and finally peaked around the corner as Gerry slid down to sit against the wall.

Someone sitting beside him caught his attention as he glanced over to see Dahlia staring back in concern. They both remained silent thinking over what they both had heard. Gerry couldn't help but ponder back to Julius' last statement.

"He's right you know." Dahlia finally said softly. Gerry stared at her a bit harshly, but sighed and nodded. It didn't surprise him that she had listened in to their conversation.

"I know. It's just… I don't know how to fix this." He answered in a defeated tone while leaning his head back on the cool wall. Dahlia pulled her knees up to her chest and laughed.

"What do you mean you don't know how to fix this. Of course you do." She spit out almost bitterly surprising Gerry with her tone, "You just don't want to." She finished.

"And just what do you mean by that!" He asked just as harshly while glaring at her. Dahlia was always standing up for them! She was supposed to be on his side. They had known each other first!

"Gerry… They're just like us. They aren't any different from you, Ray, or even Alan." She spoke softly trying not to anger him anymore. The look he shot her told her he didn't buy that.

"They're people Gerry. They play on your team. Your team is your family. As a captain you lead your family to victory, but right now you're only taking half of them there. The other half you're leaving out in the cold." She tried. It seemed to catch Gerry's attention though as he lifted his head to stare at her with a confused look.

"You can't hate half of your team because you need them out there on that field. You disliking them for the color of their skin is only encouraging the rest of your boys to dislike them as well. You're crippling your own team, Gerry." She continued on causing Bertier to laugh sardonically at the situation he seemed to put himself in.

"It just isn't right, Dahlia. Our kind isn't suppose to like them." He stated while bringing up his knee to lean on. Dahlia looked over to see the troubled look in his eyes and knew he was going through something. His whole life he had been taught to dislike colored people, and now he was being told to go against all of it.

"Look past the color of their skin, I know you're better than that." She tried to encourage his inner turmoil.

"How do you expect for me to do that?" He asked.

"Just see them for what they are, see them as your teammates." She stated firmly. Gerry thought about that for a long time and Dahlia continued to sit next to him in silence. The sun was setting now and she knew it was beginning to get late.

"I think... I can do that." He finally stated suddenly, scaring Dahlia slightly after such a long period of silence. She stared at him for a bit, but smiled and suddenly tackled him in a hug causing him to chuckle and hug the giddy girl back.

"Really?!" She asked pulling away and gripping his shoulders. Gerry nodded, but still held a look of uncertainty. "What?" She asked catching his look.

"I don't know where to begin." He confessed sheepishly. Dahlia let his shoulders go and began to think about that herself.

"Just… Start off by calling things out fairly tomorrow. Don't be picking on one race." She told him as he shook his head at her suggestion.

"They won't think anything of it." He brushed off dejectedly.

"Trust me." Dahlia said while standing up, "They'll notice… Especially Julius." She reached out to help Gerry up. He sat there for a bit before smiling and accepting her help.

"If you say so, Doll." He drawled still not completely convinced.

"I'm glad you're doing this Gerry. It's the right thing to do." She admitted to him before walking off to the dorms. Bertier remained standing there alone. He had doubts about this, but knew Julius and Dahlia were right in some way.

* * *

At 3 am the next morning a loud and obnoxious horn could be heard throughout the halls of the dorms. Waking not only the boys, but a very unhappy Dahlia who nearly ripped her door off its hinges as she tried to see who was blowing the dang horn.

"Well good morning Ms. Black." Greeted Coach Boone as he saw her open the door. The harsh glare she sent him managed to make him chuckle a good amount.

"What are you doing?" She asked him as she squinted against the harsh lights in the hallway.

"Get ready! We're going running!" He stated before continuing to blow the horn in attempts to wake the rest of the guys up.

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" Dahlia began to protest over the horn waving her hands to catch Boone's attention once again. "I need to come?! It's not even light out yet!" She pointed out flabbergasted.

"Well of course you do. You're a part of this team, right?" He asked her causing her to swear in her head. She had to admit he was good at getting her to do things she really didn't want to do by using her own words against her.

"I thought you said I didn't need to work out with the boys anymore." She tried to negotiate. Coach Boone crossed his arms and stared down at the sleepy female while humming in thought.

"Let's cut a deal." He told her as boys began to finally make their way down stairs quickly as the rest of the coaches urged them down. Dahlia continued to squint at him tiredly.

"If you can keep up with me on this run. You will no longer need to do mandatory workouts at camp." Dahlia widened her eyes a bit at the offer, suddenly just a tad bit more up, but before she could respond Coach Boone cut her off, "Only if you keep up with me. You understand?" He reinforced. She smiled and nodded shaking his hand.

"Now you have five minutes to be downstairs and ready to join us." He called back as he was leaving. Dahlia shouted and quickly made her way back in the room to at least brush her teeth. No way was she about to go see everyone with morning breath.

When she finally made her way outside she could see a bunch of guys who were shivering and barely awake. She could relate to that feeling. She herself didn't have much time to get ready and because of that she had to run in what she slept in, which really wasn't much. A large white t-shirt, some sleeping shorts, and she just managed to pull on some shoes as she stumbled out of her and Sheryl's room.

And Sheryl! That lucky butt, she got to stay and sleep in through all this.

"Nice of you to finally join us Ms. Black." Coach Boone greeted. Some of the more awake boys managed to glance back at her and one even had the nerve to whistle at her as she pushed past them grumpily to stand near the front of the group.

"What is she doing!?" Gerry questioned staring at the attire she was wearing, "Does she not realize she is here with a bunch of guys?!" He marveled as he rubbed his temples at the girl he considered his sister and was growing protective of. Ray had merely chuckled and elbowed Alan as he looked away and blushed slightly.

"She probably didn't have time to get ready." Alan spoke up. He really did think what she was wearing was revealing, it's not that he minded though, he just didn't like how some of the others were looking at her. Ray in particular. Gerry seemed to think about his statement before agreeing with him. They barely had time to get ready themselves.

Once Dahlia made it to the front of the group she looked over and greeted Rev, Petey, and Blue. Petey seemed to stare and let a low whistle out as they continued to wait for the rest of the guys to get out.

"Dang girl!" Petey had said, "You be getting everyone hot and flustered with what you got wearing!" He told her laughing a bit when she half-heartedly tried to cover herself up with her hands.

"Man, don't look at her like that!" Blue scolded Petey as he pushed his head away. Rev stared a bit before taking off the hoodie he had on and offering it to her. Seeing his gesture Dahlia blushed a tad, she really wasn't used to guys doing things like that for her.

"You don't have to do that for me." Dahlia declined politely, "Plus, won't you get cold?" She told him gesturing to the thin white shirt he had on under the hoodie.

"I'll be alright. Don't want the guys to look at you like that," He gestured to Petey for example, "Just take it, I insist." He urged. Dahlia smiled and took the article of clothing to put on. It was larger on her, but that only made it better since it covered more of her legs than the shorts she was wearing.

"Thanks Rev. You're quite the gentleman." She told him graciously with a smile that warmed his heart. "You don't mind if I keep this for awhile, right?" She asked as she tugged it down a bit more. The funny look she got from him caused her to chuckle, "I'll need to wash it after this. I'm going to get it all sweaty." She explained. Rev stared at her for a bit and realized that she was naturally quite beautiful. She had on a large hoodie, her hair was thrown up, and her eyes were still a bit puffy from just waking up, yet she could still get the guys to whistle and stare. She was really something.

"Don't worry about it Dahlia. You can keep it, it looks good on you." He told her smiling softly. Dahlia was silent for a bit before nodding happily, she didn't know how to respond to this type of treatment. He was so polite.

"Alright listen up!" Coach Boone called out catching their attention. "You will follow Doc, myself, and the other coaches and we are going to take a little run through the woods." A chorus of upset 'whats!' could be heard, but Boone continued on.

"If you get lost along the way, don't bother coming back to camp. Just hitch hike you hind parts home. Are there any questions?" He asked leaving the boys to accept his statement.

"You sure you up for this Baby Doll?" Petey asked Dahlia as she turned to stare at him.

"Ms. Black! Let's go!" She heard Coach Boone call out to her while gesturing her to move forward and stand beside him. She smiled back at Petey before joining Coach Boone in jogging, "Just try to keep up, Petey!"

The run was exhausting and seemed to drag on for an eternity. Dahlia kept up with Coach Boone like she said she would, but would lag a bit every once in awhile when she'd trip over a root or branch. The scenery was the only thing that kept her from collapsing and just all together quitting… Well, that and the fact that Boone would call out to her tauntingly every so once in awhile to ask if she was okay. Other times Gerry or one of the other guys would catch up to her and pick on her jokingly causing her to push them away. One of those time Gerry even slipped and fell, which caused her to laugh so hard she almost did the same.

When they finally came to a rest, Dahlia could barely stay standing. So, she plopped down on the floor and leaned back to try and catch her breath. She felt gross from all the sweat that had soaked the back of the hoodie, and was thankful that Rev was letting her keep it. She wouldn't want to give it back to him even after she washed it with the amount she had sweat in it. Looking at the others she saw that they were just as sweaty and filthy too. Had some of the others fallen like Gerry had as well?

"Anybody know what this place is?" Coach asked while breathing heavily. The guys and Dahlia glanced up to see that they were in what seemed to be a foggy graveyard.

"This is Gettysburg. This is where they fought the battle of Gettysburg." Silence seemed to rest on everyone's shoulder as they let where they were sink in.

"Fifty thousand men died right here on this field. Fighting the same fight that we still fighting amongst ourselves, today. This green field right here was painted red, bubbling with the blood of young boys... Smoke and hot lead pouring right through their bodies." He spoke piercing the hearts of who heard his words. Dahlia glanced around at the others as they listened to Coach's speech.

"Listen to their souls. men. I kill my brother with malice in my heart. Hatred destroyed my family." He stated while turning to stare at his team. "You listen. You take a lesson from the dead. If we don't come together, right now on this hallowed ground, we too will be destroyed. Just like they were." Boone claimed while looking out to the graveyard lit by the tiniest bit of sunshine as the morning came to.

"I don't care if you like each other or not, but you will respect each other. And maybe… I don't know… Learn to play like men." He declared. Dahlia was thoroughly impressed by the speech and only hoped that it affected the boys like it did her. Glancing around she spotted Gerry and saw that he was thinking, and hard. When he caught her stare, he seemed to grow even more troubled before nodding, seemingly answering her unspoken question. This brought enough glee to Dahlia's heart that she could almost run the whole way back… If only she could feel her legs.

* * *

Practice ran into the night and Dahlia was told earlier by Boone that since she kept her part of the bargain while running she no longer needed to workout. She had proven that she was fast enough for Boone's liking and could keep up with the boys as they ran their plays to catch better photos.

When it grew dark and the field had to be lit by headlights, Dahlia put her camera away and continued to watch the guys play the same as they were previously. Gerry hadn't called anyone out yet and Dahlia was beginning to think he had lied to her when he told her he'd do it. A whistle was blown as Coach Boone slammed a football down on the ground.

"Alright! We'll be out here all night until we get this thing right, let's go!" He barked out before exiting the field and calling out, "On the ball Rev." Dahlia stood from her place and crossed her arms in anticipation.

"Ready! Set!" Rev called out as all the guys seemed to be on edge, "Hut!" He shouted out causing the guys to go into play. Dahlia mentally went over where she would have been to catch shots of each person, but cringed when Julius passed Ray and tackled Petey, throwing him to the ground. Dahlia huffed and glared at Ray knowing he let Julius pass him without a care.

"Coach!" She called out catching his stare, "You saw that didn't you!" She asked him incredulously. Why wasn't he doing anything! She knew he could see them. Coach Boone stared at her for a bit, but before he could respond shouting could be heard from the field.

"What was that Ray!" This caught Dahlia's attention and she instantly forgot her irritation as she realized the voice belonged to Gerry. "Whatever it is it ain't blocking!" This seemed to get the other players' attention as Dahlia only began to smile, was he really doing it?

"Give me a break, Gerry." Ray spit out glaring slightly.

"You want a break?! I'll give you a break!" Gerry shouted as he slammed into Ray only to be pushed back.

"Me and Julius -" He began to say, but Dahlia's attention was caught by Coach Yoast telling Tyrell to "Wait a minute. Let them handle this."

"If we get to Rev once, just one time… I swear to God I'm going to hit you so hard by the time you come too. Ooh boy, you're gonna need a new haircut." He shouted as Ray continued to stare at him in confusion and irritation. Dahlia smiled as she glanced over at Julius who was staring as well.

"You understand me!" He asked as he slammed his helmet into Ray's once again. Ray pushed him away while glaring quite harshly. Gerry let out a strange laugh before walking away and calling out, "Let's play fellas!" Dahlia's smile widened as she cheered mentally as to not look insane. Looking to Gerry she could see him glance over at her and wink before going back into position.

Coach Boone blew his whistle and stared back at Dahlia with a smile. She had rolled her eyes slightly when she realized it was an answer to her previous outburst. It seemed Boone knew that Gerry was going to say something, this guy always seemed to know what was going to happen.

"Ready!" Rev called again, "Set! Hut!" He shouted as everyone once again went into action. Dahlia watched Ray closely to see if he did what he was told. She was surprised that he seemed to at least give a half-hearted attempt before Julius got past him and once again tackled Petey. The whistle shrieked and Petey stood up quickly.

"Get off me!" He shouted shrugging Julius' help away.

"You alright big Petey! You alright!" Julius jokingly said while slapping him on the back good heartedly.

"You really stuck him Campbell!" Gerry said approvingly as he stood beside Julius.

"Yeah! I love me a little contact, Petey!" He called out still happily. Dahlia smiled as things between the two seemed to be okay.

Suddenly Gerry gave Julius a good shove and shouted, "Left side!" Julius stumbled a bit before staring at Gerry quietly. Dahlia could feel herself get nervous, but continued to watch on (as did the Coaches). Gerry stared back while smiling and nodding encouragingly.

"Strong side!" Julius shouted while shoving him back. They continued to do this and Dahlia smiled as she looked around at the others who stood by and watched with similar reactions. There shouts got louder as they grabbed each other by the shoulders and slammed their helmets against each other.

Dahlia breathed out a sigh of content and nodded in satisfaction. It seems Gerry did stick to his word after all. Things would begin to look up from here on out.

* * *

Alrighty! Hope that was alright! I apologize once again for the long wait, things are getting a bit crazy.

Anyways the votes between Rev and Alan are tied at the moment. (without my own vote that is)

I'm contemplating if I should hold out on the romance and wait until the end, that way I could give two separate endings.

One would be with Rev, and one would be with Alan.

What do you guys think?

Fav/Follow/Review!


	7. Chapter Seven

Hey Guys! So I need all of **YOUR** help! Please!

I'm still debating about the love interest in this story (I'm so sorry about that!) There are three options I'm debating over and I would really appreciate it if some of you would give me your input! (Thanks for those of you who have already!)

They'll be at the end of this story!

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own any of this!

* * *

Chapter Seven: I've Got Sunshine On A Cloudy Day

The following morning came and Dahlia woke from her slumber, she smiled to herself as she realized that the previous night had not been a dream. Not only did Gerry actually keep his promise, it seemed that Julius and the other team members seemed to be getting along just fine. The next best thing was that she no longer needed to run workouts with Sheryl. She swore that girl could have dang well been Coach Boone's protege with the amount of pleasure she had while ordering her around.

She clumsily hopped out of her room while trying to tug on her left shoe and was surprised to hear someone chuckle when she almost lost her balance. She quickly glanced up in slight alarm to find someone leaning out in the hall, they seemed to be waiting for her.

Julius couldn't help but laugh at the girl who was tripping over herself as she tried to rush and get to the field. She had on her oversized Jersey, as well as a black pair of fitted long pants to go along with it. Her hair had been tied on the top of her head in a bun, but strands were falling loose as she hopped around to keep her balance.

"Mornin' Julius." She greeted cheerfully as she stood up and brushed her fringe out of her eyes. She was curious as to why he would be waiting here for her. He never seemed like he wanted to talk at all.

"Hey." He greeted back while pushing himself off of the wall to come closer to her. "Did you talk to Bertier?" He asked casually as he stared at the tiny girl in front of him. He had never really noticed how small she was until he stood right next to her.

"What?" She asked a little surprised and taken back.

"Are you the one who talked some sense into him?" Julius patiently asked again. If it weren't for the smile on his face she could have thought he was angry with her. That smile though, it was almost as if he already knew the answer. Dahlia instantly knew what he was talking about and couldn't help the huge grin that grew on her face.

"He would have figured it out eventually." She told him as she began to laugh slightly. Julius chuckled as well before reaching out and pulling the lovable girl in for a hug. This shocked Dahlia for an instant, but she quickly hugged him back as well. She was never one to deny a good natured hug.

"Well either way," He said as they pulled away from each other, "Thanks for treating us no differently than any other person. I just want you to know that if you ever need anything I've got your back." He said before patting her messy bun and walking out towards the field. "You're family now!" He called back at her. Dahlia stood there stunned. She never thought Julius would be this friendly, but she had to admit she liked this side of him. Plus, she was now honorary family, she happily thought as she smiled merrily to herself.

"Wait up!" She called out to a laughing figure that she could now consider not only a friend, but a brother as well.

* * *

The dark haired beauty smiled to herself as she watched what seemed like a completely new team practice. Both races were getting along great. She could hear everyone shouting at each other, but unlike before it was to get each other pumped rather than fighting words, and Sheryl seemed to be getting more excited by the minute.

"I'm glad they're getting along. Maybe now they'll play better, right Black?" Sheryl asked as she turned to stare at her. Dahlia looked down and smiled before nodding.

"It's about time too! I'm tired of wasting precious film on them!" She told Sheryl, as she dramatically placed her wrist to her forehead in complete despair. They were both silent for a bit before they both began to laugh at Dahlia's theatrical display.

"Hey… Who's that?" Sheryl asked glancing behind Dahlia. Curious, Dahlia turned around and caught sight of a beautiful red car driving their way. She shrugs to herself as she tried to figure out who on Earth was in the car. She glanced towards the boys and found that even they had caught sight of the beauty. Gerry especially.

She and Sheryl watched as two men stepped out of the car and one of them had long golden hair. She couldn't see much other than that. Sheryl had began to laugh slightly.

"His hair is almost as long as yours!" Sheryl pointed out while slapping her knee and laughing. Dahlia glanced at her with a slightly offended look.

"His hair is prettier than mines too!" She said all too seriously, which caused Sheryl to grip her sides as she began to laugh even harder. Dahlia cracked a smile as well trying to keep her laughing to a minimum, it wasn't polite to laugh at others. She had to admit his hair was nice, and it didn't make him look bad, it just didn't quite seem to fit him.

"I wonder if he's here for camp?" She wondered out loud causing Sheryl to try and calm herself down.

"Not with that hair he ain't." She stated. Dahlia turned to give her a hard stare, but Sheryl was quick to defend herself, "No! No offense to him! I mean the Coaches will tell him to cut it in order to play. I don't think hair is allowed that long in football." Sheryl tried to explain. Dahlia stared for a moment but accepted her explanation.

"Hey Fellas!" She heard Gerry call out. Turning her attention his way she frowned at the daunting smirk he had on his face. "Look at that fruitcake!" He called out. This got a bunch of the guys to chuckle as one of them even whistled much like they often did towards Dahlia. She found herself struggling as she too fought back a chuckle and rolled her eyes at the insult. Gerry just _had_ to say something didn't he.

"Gerry just keep your mouth shut and get back on that field!" Coach Yoast yelled out as he and Boone went to greet the newcomer. Dahlia finally let her smile show as she began to collect the footballs that were spread out amongst the field. Sheryl had told her that it'd be a bunch of help if she could gather them up again.

As she finally brought back the last football to her pile she was surprised to find the new guy standing there. She stared at him and smiled when he looked up from the balls to meet her gaze. He seemed surprise to see her. She could understand that she was the only girl, besides Sheryl, that was at an all boys camp.

In reality the new guy was surprised for a much different reason that had to do with the fact that the girl in front of him was lovely.

"Hey." She greeted as she gripped the football she was holding. He stared at her for a bit before returning a smile of his own. He didn't expect to see a girl here, especially one who looked like this. She was beautiful with her bright smile and dimple. Usually girls like this didn't want to be anywhere near a sport that could ruin their face, especially such a rough sport like football. He couldn't help but wonder which of the lucky players had her on their arm.

"Hi." He greeted while reaching out a hand for her to shake. She smiled and returned the greeting. She could see him glancing over to the group of players with a calculating stare. She turned her head and spotted Gerry amongst the group. She smiled impishly as she thought of something. She just wondered if this new guy would get the hint.

"You any good at throwing?" She asked catching the new guy's attention once again. He seemed to chuckle and shrug a bit before replying with a simple, "I'm decent." Satisfied with that she handed the ball she held to him and smiled when he just gave her a questioning look.

"The one who called you a fruitcake, that's Gerry. He's the team captain. You mind giving him the ball? They need one to start practicing again and I'm too tired to run over there." She told him with an implying smile. He seemed to get it and smiled back before nodding his head.

"No problem." He answered giving her a slight smirk.

"Thanks!" She said gratefully before turning around to head back to Sheryl. "Oh! And don't let him get away with calling you that." She warned him while turning back to see him aiming.

"Don't worry, I won't." He spoke as he found his target and threw the ball. Dahlia stopped for a bit watching as the ball travelled an impressive mile's distance and hit the back of Gerry's head. He and the guys turned around and stared at the two figures of a laughing Dahlia and satisfied _fruitcake._ Seeing Gerry's angry stare Dahlia quickly shook her head and jabbed a finger at the new guy before backing away, laughing all the way.

"Yeah, fruitcake, huh?" Julius could be heard laughing and saying. Dahlia smiled at this and shook her head as Sheryl began to gush over how awesome that pitch was and how they needed him on the team, now!

"Black!" She could hear Coach Boone call. She flinched slightly thinking she was going to get busted, but when she glanced up she could only see the group of adults smiling at her. As she reached them she could see the new guy was with them, and he didn't seem all too thrilled.

"Hello." She greeted the stranger politely. He seemed to be a man of authority, much like Coach Boone was. She could also tell that him and the new guy were not from around here.

"This is the team's personal photographer, Dahlia Black." Coach Boone introduced causing Dahlia to wave slightly.

"Dahlia, this is Colonel Bass and his son, Ronnie." Coach Yoast added in causing the two to nod in response. Colonel Bass seemed to stare at Dahlia for a bit.

"Black?" He spoke up causing Dahlia to nod in response. "Well, now would your father happen to be Daniel Black?" Dahlia seemed to tilt her head in wonder. Not many people would call her daddy by his real name, especially since he insisted people call him Danny. Much like she preferred Doll, rather than Dahlia.

"Yessir. How'd you know that?" She asked mildly concerned.

"You look just like him. I was one of your Daddy's customers back in California." He explained causing Dahlia to smile widely, "See you've even inherited his signature dimple." Colonel Bass pointed out while chuckling. Ronnie seemed to smile as well.

"Well, I'm sure Pops will be happy to know that one of his customers are returning! I should have been able to tell that was my Dad's work." Dahlia exclaimed while motioning to their beautiful red vehicle. Colonel Bass nodded before going back to a business-like state.

"So, do we have a deal?" He asked the Coaches catching Ronnie's and Dahlia's attention. The Coaches glanced at each other as they replayed the impressive throw made by the blonde Californian.

"I… Think we can find a place for your boy." Coach Yoast pondered while Coach Boone nodded as well, "Under one condition." Ronnie and Colonel Bass nodded in agreement as Dahlia stood there completely lost. She was beginning to wonder why she was here.

"What would that be?" Colonel Bass asked as Dahlia could see Ronnie becoming nervous. She couldn't understand why they would even think of turning this boy away. He had a heck of an arm on him!

"Ms. Black? How good are you with a pair of scissors?" Coach Boone asked as all eyes went to her. She stood there confused for awhile until she remembered what Sheryl had told her when Ronnie had first arrived. She chuckled nervously as she scratched her neck slightly, she could now see why Ronnie was getting nervous. He must have known this would happen.

"I'm good enough, I suppose." She replied, receiving three bright smiles and one not so happy sigh.

* * *

"So... Are you trying out for Quarterback?" She asked a bit awkwardly as she tried to cut Ronnie's hair. This task was proving itself to be more difficult than she originally thought it would be. The poor guy was so tense that his shoulders were locked, which gave her trouble with cutting away the length of his golden locks. He simply nodded which caused Dahlia to huff at the lack of a response.

"Would you calm down?! I ain't going to cut you if that's what you're stressing about." She gave up and tried to sooth Ronnie so he would relax his shoulders. He took a deep breath and relaxed before meeting Dahlia's eyes in the mirror. They were sitting in the locker room as the boys were still out practicing. This was the first time Dahlia got to see inside of this particular building, and she wasn't impressed to be completely honest.

"It's not that I'm scared you're going to cut me, it's just…" He let his sentence fall as he sighed. Dahlia gave him an understanding smile before patting him on the shoulder.

"Don't worry. It'll grow back if your hair means that much to you." She tried to cheer him up as she began to cut off his locks a little at a time, so as to not freak him out. "Plus I think you'll look nice with the new hairdo." She complimented causing Ronnie to smile slightly.

"You think so?" He asked not so convinced. She smiled brightly and nodded while still cutting.

"Yeah! You've got a nice face and build. The girls at school will be all over you." She responded lightly. Ronnie smiled a little more genuinely. He was beginning to like this Dahlia girl. She spoke so casually, almost as if she knew him her entire life and this comforted him greatly. Having moved from California all these new faces and attitudes were making him feel uneasy.

"Even you?" He asked causing Dahlia to shoot a warning look his way before smiling slightly. She could tell it was a joke, and laughed as she pondered whether he would be just as flirty as Petey was. Heck, he and Petey would probably get along.

"Don't flatter yourself. Dating isn't a concern of mines." She spoke truthfully as she finally cut most of the length away.

"Oh, so who's the lucky guy?" He asked trying to get to know the only female on the team a little more. She seemed like the type he'd like to have as a friend. She seemed to stop snipping away at his hair to give him a funny look in the mirror.

"Why does everyone assume that I belong to someone? I'm single. Dating just isn't my main priority, you know?" She replied indifferently. Ronnie smiled at the girl and shook his head at her response, which got him a slight glare from the girl trying to cut his hair nicely.

"You're beautiful. That's why people assume you're taken. How do you not know that?" He spoke bluntly causing Dahlia to flush slightly. You would think with her slightly blunt nature she'd be used to other people's blunt responses. How wrong that thought was.

"You're good looking as well, but you're single!" She accused, but this merely caused Ronnie to chuckle.

"True, but I _know_ I'm good looking." He told her boastfully causing her to slap the back of his head lightly as the two of them laughed.

"So you came from California?" She asked changing the subject as she recalled his father saying something about knowing her own.

"Yeah, we just moved here from Huntington Beach." He responded watching as Dahlia continued to concentrate with styling his hair. At the mention of his hometown her eyes brightened slightly.

"Oh! I'm from Los Angeles! We were practically neighbors." She responded cheerfully. Ronnie smiled as well as he realized that was why she seemed so familiar. She was from the same area, which is also why her attitude was so much more familiar as well. He had noticed that people here weren't quite as friendly. She was like a bright ray of sunshine in this drab, black and white town.

"So, I think I have a plan to get... Gerry?" He seemed hesitant at the name, but when Dahlia nodded in confirmation he continued, "To get Gerry back." This caught Dahlia's attention as she halted with her styling to stare at him in interest. He motioned for her to come closer to him so he could whisper it to her, and when she bent down closer he quickly pulled her in to kiss her on the cheek. She gasped slightly while pulling away, but Ronnie only continued to smile at her.

"Wha?" She asked in shock. It's not that it bothered her, the peck had just caught her by surprise. She didn't understand what that had to do with Gerry.

"YOU'RE GOING TO KISS HIM!?" She suddenly shouted while laughing as Ronnie only continued to smile at her.

"So, do you think that'll get to him?" He asked her as she finally calmed down enough to continue on his hair, which as of now looked actually pretty nice.

"He'll be pissed." She responded, a smile still haunting her face.

"Don't worry I'll be able to handle what he throws at me." He responded calmly.

"I hope that includes fists as well." She spoke once again causing Ronnie to chuckle and nod in confirmation. It seemed to be a short while more until she finally put the scissors down and smiled at Ronnie through the mirror.

"Do you like it?" She asked excitedly as she bounced slightly in anticipation. Ronnie seemed to stare at himself in the reflection and reached up to touch his now short hair.

"It's going to take me awhile to get used to it being like this, but yes, I like it." He responded causing Dahlia to brighten even more, "Thanks!" He responded gratefully turning around to stare at her actual figure rather than her reflection.

"Doll! Get out! No girls allowed!" She heard the loud voice of Petey shout while banging on some lockers. This was a sign that the guys were done practicing and if Dahlia wanted to keep her eyes from falling out, she needed to get out now. She quickly hugged Ronnie before wishing him good luck with his little mission and quickly booked it out of there. Ronnie smiled and turned to continue touching his hair. He really didn't mind the new style, he just missed his old hair. It took him forever to grow that out!

"Sunshine..." He heard someone call out from behind him after a bit.

"Sunshiiinnnee..." They called out again causing him to glance up to see a colored boy in the mirror. Sunshine. Seems like he got himself a nickname already. He shrugged inwardly and decided that it was a heck of a lot better than Ronnie.

* * *

I hope you liked the chapter! Sorry it may seem a bit short, but I can start updating faster when I have a plan for the pairing in this story.

Here are the choices:

(1) Pick one love interest and write the story out as it would be. The winner is Alan when it comes down to votes that I've received.

(2) Hold off on any major romance until the end, and have two different endings. One where Dahlia ends up with Rev, and the other with Alan.

(3) Split the story in two. One version is with Alan, and the other with Rev. (This choice I'm a bit hesitant with.)

Choose! If not, I'm afraid I'll have to choose and let people down!

Fav/Follow/Review!


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